Sept. 14--Jersey does not have the look of a fleet-footed athlete. But the combination of short legs and ears nearly long enough to pose a tripping hazard didn't keep the golden brown dachshund from taking first prize at Antioch's "Racing of the Weiners."
The dachshund-only race is an annual feature at Antioch's Fall Arts Crafts Faire and Apple Fest. Barbara Porch, executive director of the Antioch Chamber of Commerce, which organizes the festival, said it was originally part of Antioch's Fall Fest. When that event ended, the Chamber of Commerce decided to keep the tradition going, she said.
"I think there are a lot of dachshunds in the area looking for something fun," Porch said. "They're little, but they're quick."
Before the first race, owners held their wriggling black and brown dogs atop the hay bales marking the starting line as the dogs leaned side to side to sniff their competition. Spectators lined the course, a stretch of grass marked off with hay bales and roughly a dozen bales long.
It's hard to say whether Jersey was the swiftest dog to toe the starting line in the "tweenie," or medium-size, category, but focus certainly helped. Once set loose on the course, some competitors began chasing each other, while others ran to greet spectators instead of their owners at the finish line, shouting their dogs' names and waving favorite toys.
Jersey headed straight for the finish and eight-year-old Marley Gaskillof Lindenhurst, who scooped the pup up in a victory hug.
Marley said she spent the last two weeks teaching Jersey to sprint when she called and squeezed a squeaky blue and green tennis ball, but it wasn't Marley or Jersey's first time at the races.
Her grandmother, Beverly Ward, said she's been racing her dachshunds at the festival for about a decade. Her most successful dog, Sandy, was a seven-time winner, she said.
This year, Ward, wearing a locket with Sandy's photo and sporting a tattoo of the outline of a dachshund's distinctive long body on the inside of her forearm, had three dogs racing -- one for each size category.
Marley's brother Grant, 2, worked with Roxy, while her older brother James, 10, handled Snickers, who ran unopposed in the 21 pounds and up category, winning despite stopping to shake, sniff the grass and watch the crowd.
There were activities for the humans as well, including booths offering arts, crafts, activities and a farmers market stand.
Saturday featured contests for both apple pie baking and eating. Four bushels' worth of apples went to an apple-sculpting contest for kids, said Amy Roberts, an artist from Wildwood. In addition to making the wooden signs and porch decorations she's been selling at the fair for about 18 years, Roberts said she works with Porch to come up with new ideas for kids' activities each year.
"That's why I keep coming back, it's got a nice family atmosphere," Roberts said.
lzumbach@tribpub.com
