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5/31/03

Local dog to compete in 'Wiener Nationals'

JOHN HALL
Staff Writer

MURRIETA ---- Watching Mayer hot-dogging around in his Murrieta living room doesn't exactly conjure up images of "Chariots of Fire" or "Rocky."

David Carlson/Staff Photographer

David and Eileen Sanchez's miniature dachshund Mayer, right, will be competing in tonight's Wienerschnitzel Wiener Nationals race. Mayer's brother Oscar, left, will be on the sidelines cheering him on.

But come tonight, the little guy might just overcome the odds against him ---- like being barely tall enough to keep his stomach off the ground ---- and become a sports champion like the heroes in those movies.

Mayer is an 8-year-old miniature dachshund who will be one of only 64 dogs like him from across the state competing in the eighth annual Wienerschnitzel Wiener Nationals at the Los Alamitos Race Course. The race is a 50-yard dachshund dash on the same track on which the quarterhorses race.

If he takes home the trophy, which would be noticeably larger than he his, Mayer will be known as 2003's fastest wiener dog in the west. And he might just have his brother Oscar to thank.

David and Eileen Sanchez, both 25, own two dachshunds. They submitted a letter last month to event organizers with the hope that Mayer could compete in this year's race. Eileen wrote the letter as if it came directly from Oscar.

The letter reads: "My name is Oscar and I am writing on behalf of my dear brother Mayer. Ya see, Mayer's dream is to be the Wiener National Champion of 2003. He is hoping he can win to impress the girl next door, Penny. Penny is a hazel-eyed, spotted doxie and Mayer is love-stricken with her. Everyday he stares through the hole in the fence, just hoping to get a glimpse of his true love. So maybe if Mayer gets to race, Penny will come and see him and cheer him on, then sparks will fly. I would love to be an uncle, so please let Mayer compete in the race."

Oscar's plea paid off and race organizers sent the Sanchezes a congratulation letter inviting Mayer to compete. He'll be No. 6 in the third of eight heats, with his race set to begin at about 6:35 p.m. The winner of each heat will then compete in a final race for the championship.

It'll be up to David Sanchez to coax the all-black, floppy-eared doxie to victory. David will be standing at the finish line with Mayer's favorite toy ---- a pull-toy in the shape of a ring that looks like a dog.

That is, if the toy has survived up until tonight.

Thursday night, Oscar and Mayer clamped their little jaws on it and had a somewhat friendly tug-of-war for awhile. Mayer would shake his head violently while Oscar held on tight, then Oscar ---- who weighs a bit more than his brother ---- would try to use that advantage to maneuver the toy out of Mayer's mouth.

Ultimately it was David Sanchez who won out, having to just about lift both little dogs off the ground to wrestle the toy away so it would be in one piece for the big race.

The Sanchezes got the idea to enter one of their dogs in the race after attending last year's Wiener Nationals.

"You get there and there are wiener dogs everywhere," Eileen said. "It was really a lot of fun."

Once the individual heats start, the dog owners never seem to know what will happen, David said. "Some of the dogs would go backward" behind the starting gate, he said.

Mayer's training regiment hasn't exactly been strenuous.

Sure there's been the periodic long walk or the grappling of a toy with Oscar, but the real test may have been the two times Mayer raced his brother in a makeshift Wiener National in the Sanchezes' back yard.

Boxes were placed over the two dogs to simulate a starting gate, then lifted up so the brothers could race out.

Eileen says she expects Mayer's real race tonight to go one of two ways: "I think he'll either do really well or he'll just chase one of the girl dogs," she said with a laugh.

If Mayer does well enough to take home first place, the Sanchezes say they'll spend the $1,000 prize on the two dogs, who can expect some new toys. "Maybe we'll put some of it away for their college fund," David joked.

"One thing I've noticed about dachshund owners is that they all seem to treat their dogs just like they were their children," he said, adding that he and his wife certainly do just that as the dogs are the closest thing they have to kids right now.

When it's time to go see Eileen's mother, "it's a trip to grandma's," the Sanchezes say. Or if they're headed off to see friends, they'll sometimes "bring the boys along."

Eileen said she was really hoping Mayer could compete this year because "he likes to run but he's getting older."

She said that when the dogs were about at the age of 4 or 5 ---- or closer to 30 in dog years ---- they started getting gray hairs around their mouths.

"These are the type of dog that just make you smile when you see them," Eileen said. "They have such personality and they really take on human traits."

David says he sees that on the dogs' faces when they almost seem to smile at times.

Eileen has had the brothers since they were about 2 weeks old.

While dachshunds these days can cost hundreds of dollars, Eileen said her father got Oscar and Mayer for a lot less. He paid $50 each and traded a bicycle for them, she said.

They looked just like any other puppy at that young age, Eileen said.

"But then they just got longer and longer," she said. David quickly interrupted and joked, "They just never got any taller."

Who knows, Mayer just might stand a little bit taller tonight after competing to be the fastest wiener in the west.

Along with the prize money and trophy, the winning entry will also receive a dog house in the shape of a Wienerschnitzel restaurant.

Proceeds from the event ---- tickets cost $5 and T-shirts will also be sold ---- go to the Seal Beach Animal Care Center, which works to place stray animals in good homes.

Over the years, the event has raised more than $70,000 for the center and typically draws the largest crowd of the year at the race course. Last year, more than 6,000 people attended the race, officials said.

The event, which runs between horse races at the track, includes calls by the track announcer, a photo-finish camera and a post-race parade.

For more information and directions to the track, which is located at 4961 Katella Ave., call (714) 820-2800.

Contact staff writer John Hall at (909) 676-4315, Ext. 2628, or [email protected].

5/31/03

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