'MO - July 2008 - (Page 12)

community Wiener Takes All By Julie Forbes Seated front row, center, at the Capitol Hill Arts Center, I gripped the armrests of my chair as the crowd started a short-lived chant, “WIENERS! WIENERS! WIENERS!” The documentary was delayed due to the massive number of people who showed up to see Wiener Takes All, a full-length documentary that follows national wiener dog racing and other competitive dachshund events. “I had no idea there were so many wiener dog fans!” said the host to which the crowd erupted in cheer. The ﬁlm was structured similarly to one of my favorite movies of all time: Best In Show, and followed several competing dachshunds and their humans for a few years of racing. With footage from regional qualifying races all the way to national championships, I can’t say there is much out there more entertaining than watching 10 dachshunds run their little hearts (and legs) out in a race. Some of the contenders’ names were: Seattle’s Own Hailey, Heidi Roo, Vinny Barbarino, Noodles and Pretzel and giggles were abundant for 79 minutes. Although wiener dog racing is not taken terribly seriously and is certainly not a recognized sport by the American Kennel Club, it is not without controversy, heartbreak and ultimately, for one little sausage, unimaginable glory as the winner gets to ride on the top of a parade ﬂoat. Despite their stubby legs and long bodies, dachshunds really are quite fast! I should know, as my own little doxie “Leia” is surprisingly quick and agile. I entered Leia into the Noodles and Buddy collide in the infamous 2004 Wiener Nationals. Star 101.5 wiener dog races at Emerald Downs Casino a few years ago. Unfortunately her name was not picked to be a contender, but I was certain she would have won. I had even started to train her to run through the ﬁnish line, and important practice I remember from my own track and ﬁeld days. The little dogs were put into holding boxes, which were, not surprisingly, longer than they were wide. At the starting horn, a big ﬂap door is lifted and the dogs dart out, hopefully in a straight line toward their owner at the ﬁnish line. The people at the ﬁnish were equipped with their dog’s favorite squeaky toys, squeaking madly as they screamed for their wieners to run to them. Some dogs got piled up at the start while others decided it was more important to scold the dogs around them then to actually just run the race. Some even ran off to the side or in the opposite direction. It was the disciplined and seasoned racers that knew to just shoot out and run like the dickens. Wiener dog races happily raise money for Greyhound Racing, a sport in which I ﬁnd no humor whatsoever. In the end, most of the humans participating really were there for fun and wouldn’t race their dogs if the dogs weren’t happy to do it. On a side note, there are actually ministers at dog shows who marry dogs. It is called “muttrimony” and when asked if she would marry same-sex dogs, she said ﬁrmly, “No.” She would marry a Rottweiler to a Shih Tzu, but there would be no same-sex canine marriages on her watch. Sigh. We really do have a long way to go, in many regards. Through everything, I walked out onto 12th Ave with one thing clear: I sure do love my wiener! For information on the ﬁlm visit: www.wienertakesall.com. Julie is a graduate of the University of Vermont with a B.S. in Animal Science. Find her on the Web at www.SensitiveDog.com. PHOTO CREDIT: KE VIN NIBUR / FLEETING IMAGE PHOTOGRAPHY PET PROJECT         12 celebrating seattle’s gay community   http://www.wienertakesall.com http://www.wienertakesall.com http://www.SensitiveDog.com http://www.cabinetrends.com

Table of Contents Feed for the Digital Edition of 'MO - July 2008

'MO - July 2008 Contents Letter From The Editor Series 2008 Needs Volunteers Voices 'mo-BIZ: City Lights Sign Company HIV Is Still a Big Deal, The Online Video Series Instant Activist Pet Project: Wiener Takes All Charlene Strong on the Rights Fight Form & Function: Molding Your Middle Will the Economy Ruin LGBT Funding? Toronto is a Great Place to Meet Feature Film Review: American Teen Live Event Preview: Sitting In Circles with Rich White Girls Book Review: In the Eye of the Storm by Gene Robinson Capitol Hill Guide Three Dollar Bill Cinema Presents: Features from the Black Lagoon Raising Spirits: Tini Bigs Offers Five New Martinis SceneOut: People@Places

'MO - July 2008

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