FOND DU LAC (NBC 26) — For most people, seeing a 27-foot hotdog on the highway isn’t part of an everyday commute. But for the Oscar-Mayer Wiernermobile “hotdoggers,” it’s just another day on the job.
Kaitlyn “Ketchup Kaitlyn” Bross and Ben “Benny Buns” Godfrey are the Midwest crew for Oscar-Meyer and have traveled to 14 states since June. Bross, who studied public relations and political science at Marquette University, says this week felt like a bit of a homecoming.
“Bringing the Wienermobile to Milwaukee feels like home. I know the streets there like the back of my hand,” Bross said. “I've gotten to take my friends, my boyfriend, even some family friends around in the Wienermobile and it's so special.”
The Wienermobile program is based in Madison, Wisconsin, and the hotdoggers say it’s been a big hit statewide.
“They are so excited about the Wienermobile because it's part of their culture,” Bross said.
The hotdoggers start the program right out of college, and Bross and Godfrey said the nomadic life of sleeping in hotels and driving for hours a day is just what they want.
“Knowing that every day that we wake up and just by driving our vehicle to go get groceries or go run errands are sparkling smiles really fills you up with energy every day,” Godfrey said.
Godfrey said he’s following in the footsteps of his uncle, who drove the Wienermobile 32 years ago.
“For me, being a hotdogger was my childhood dream job,” Godfrey said. “Growing up, I always heard stories about what life was like driving a giant hotdog, and I really wanted to be that.”
And the pair said they’ve had “buns” of adventures during their journeys.
“One of my favorite memories on the hot dog highway so far was getting to be the getaway car for a couple for their wedding in Columbia, South Carolina,” Bross said. “They were huge hot dog fans and we knew how much they wanted the Wienermobile at their wedding. So we made the magic happen.”
After a year of hotdogging, Godfrey said he hopes to start his own business, and Bross said she hopes to travel and then possibly find a job in public relations. But for now, the two said they’re just focused on just hotdogging.
The pair were in Oshkosh on Wednesday, visited Appleton Thursday, head to Fond du Lac tomorrow, return to Oshkosh Saturday, and then the dogs will head to North Dakota.
You can find their exact whereabouts on the Wienermobile website. and can request the Wienermobile to come to your special event by clicking HERE.
