West Virginians love their hot dogs, and nowhere is that staple of American culture celebrated with greater fun and fanfare than during the West Virginia Hot Dog Festival at Pullman Square and 3rd Avenue in downtown Huntington, WV on the last Saturday every July.
This year, as Clear Channel Radio Huntington has reminded us, the eighth annual festival will showcase the region's top hot dog businesses from 8am to 6pm on Saturday July 28.
The event will kick off in the morning with a 5K, “Bun Run/Walk Your Buns Off,” charity walk. All proceeds will benefit the Cabell-Huntington Children's Hospital. To date, area businesses and festival-goers have helped Clear Channel's WKEE, WTCR, Oldies 97.1, WAMX, WVHU and FOX Sports Radio raise over $100,000.
“It’s great to celebrate some of the special traditions in the area, while also helping the kids in our region battle cancer and other life-threatening illness through our partnership with Cabell-Huntington Hospital's Children's Hospital,” commented Kym York-Blake, Sr. Marketing Consultant for CC-Huntington, and the annual event’s coordinator.
The West Virginia Hot Dog Festival will offer hot dog samples from a dozen of the top hot dog businesses traditional to this area. The event will also feature live music and entertainment all day, car & truck show, special kids amusements, demonstrations, retail and craft shopping, as well as fun contests for adults, kids and the family dog, including the ever-popular WV Hot Dog Festival Wiener Dog Races & $100 Dachshund Dash championship race at high noon.
There will also be “all-breed” exhibition races at 11:30, as well as a dog costume contest (any breed), a dog/owner look alike contest, hot dog eating and rootbeer chugging contests, homemade hot dog sauce competition, and much more.
“There are many decades-old, family-owned hot dog businesses in our region that are still serving up their amazing, original recipes in yester-year style, something very unique to growing up and living in our Tri-State area,” said Kym York-Blake. “The Clear Channel Radio Family is showcasing Huntington and the Tri-State’s beauty, and how wonderful it is to live, work and raise a family here.”
The annual WV Hot Dog Festival was founded by John Mandt Jr., president of Stewarts Original Hot Dogs, a family-owned hot dog staple in the Tri-State area since 1932.
The annual WV Hot Dog Festival was founded by John Mandt Jr., president of Stewarts Original Hot Dogs, a family-owned hot dog staple in the Tri-State area since 1932.
Go to West Virginia Hot Dog Festival for details.
For more information about top events in West Virginia take a look at Top Events USA selection of the annual main festivals and events in West Virginia