A familiar hot dog on wheels will be stopping by two events in Johnson County this weekend as part of a tour aimed at lifting people’s spirits.
The Oscar Mayer Weinermobile will be on display Friday from 4 to 9 p.m. at the Johnson County Old Settlers event in downtown Olathe and noon to 4 p.m. on Sunday at the Wheels & Dreams Car, Truck & Bike Show at Shawnee Town 1929 in Shawnee.
Piloted by Oscar Mayer spokespeople, otherwise known as “Hotdoggers” “Cookout Caroline” McCallar and “Nacho Dog” Norah Martin, the truck rolls into the area as part of a summer-long tour for both of them, traveling through the Midwest and the South.
“You get to really go to all these super cool places that we might not have heard of before. But it’s really cool to go to them and get to be able to meet all the people in those cities and really hear what life is like from their perspective,” McCallar said.
With both of them being from different areas of the country — McCallar hails from Georgia, and Martin from Pennsylvania — they said this will be their second trip to the Kansas City area and their first jaunt in Johnson County.
“Everyone (in the Midwest) is extremely friendly. Like I am from the South, and so it’s always the running joke of Southern hospitality, but ‘Midwest Nice,’ it’s really a thing,” McCallar said.
The Wienermobile is meant to life people’s spirits
Both recent college graduates, they found out about the job through recruiters at their schools. After completing Oscar Mayer’s training program, called “Hot Dog High,” they’re assigned a region and travel through the area, making stops to give tours, hand out merchandise and answer questions.
“Norah studied abroad a couple times. Growing up, (my parents) would always take us to national parks … So we both definitely like to travel, and that’s one of the nice perks of the job that really brought us in to applying for this,” McCallar said.
When the two make stops like they will in Johnson County, they like to hand out merchandise like wiener whistle and stickers, give people a look inside the Wienermobile and talk about their experiences on the road.
“The whole point of the Wienermobile is really to spark joy. It’s hard not to smile when you see a hot dog on wheels. But when you see us at our events, you can expect to get a wiener whistle. We have stickers, we have postcards that we all hand out, and as well as a bunch of fun photo props that we’ll take pictures with,” McCallar said.
The Wienermobile will be at 2 events this weekend
The Wienermobile will be a part of Johnson County Old Settlers event, which runs from 9 a.m to 10 p.m. Friday and Saturday. It will also feature car shows, a parade, a carnival and live music from the Olathe Community Orchestra, Phil Vassar and The Phil Collins Experience.
The iconic vehicle will also spend time which will run from noon to 4 p.m. and feature classic cars, bikes and trucks, as well as local food to purchase.
Both events are free and open to the public.
With both McCallar and Martin being extroverts and hot dog enthusiasts, they said they’re looking forward to bringing the joy of hot dogs and community to Johnson County.
“I love the part of the job where we get to talk to people and answer their questions. I always am just happy to be meeting new people all the time, and I think that was a big pull-in driving force for me to apply for this job in the first place,” Martin said.
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