Loveland Weinerfest
Every Available Element
🌭 Free admission
🐕 All breeds welcome
🏆 Dachshund Derby
👑 Costume contest
🛍️ 40+ vendors
❤️ Rescue Row adoptions
🎶 Live music all day
🌭 Free admission
🐕 All breeds welcome
🏆 Dachshund Derby
👑 Costume contest
🛍️ 40+ vendors
❤️ Rescue Row adoptions
🎶 Live music all day
How we got here
From One Folding Table to This
2022
A Meetup That Got Out of Hand
We posted a dachshund meetup in a Loveland park and expected fifteen dogs. Forty-one showed up, someone brought a tape measure, and the first Longest Wiener title was awarded on the spot.
2023
The Derby Is Born
We taped out thirty feet of racing lane, borrowed a stopwatch and ran the first Dachshund Derby. Two hundred people came. One dog ran the wrong way and is still the crowd favorite.
2024
Rescue Row Opens
Two local rescues joined us with adoptable dogs and IVDD information, and the whole point of the day snapped into focus. Nineteen dachshunds went home with new families that afternoon.
2025
Fourteen Hundred Wieners
We moved to Fairgrounds Park, added a main stage and forty-three vendors, and counted 1,412 dachshunds through the gate. Somehow it still felt like a neighborhood party.
2026
Fifth Annual
Same park, same free admission, more lanes. We are aiming for two thousand dachshunds and one hundred adoptions. Come help us get there.
Good to know
Frequently Asked Questions
When and where is Loveland Weinerfest?
Saturday, September 19, 2026 from 10:00am to 4:00pm at Fairgrounds Park, 700 S Railroad Ave, Loveland, CO 80537. We run rain or shine.
Do I need a ticket to attend?
No — admission is free and open to the public. You only pay if you enter the derby ($15 per dog) or a contest ($5 each), or if you buy something from a vendor.
Do I need to have a dachshund to come?
Not at all. Plenty of people show up just to look at short dogs, and we fully support that. Come for the vibes.
Can dachshund mixes and other breeds attend?
Absolutely — every friendly, leashed dog is welcome in the park. The derby and the Longest Wiener contest are dachshund and dachshund-mix only, but costume, limbo and the pup-cup sprint are open to everyone.
Where do I park?
Free lots on the east and south sides of the park, with overflow parking at the fairgrounds a short walk away. Arrive before 10:30 if you want the close spots — details and a map go up here two weeks before the event.
What should I bring?
A leash (six feet or shorter, no retractables), water and a collapsible bowl, poop bags, sunscreen, a folding chair or blanket, and a card or cash for the vendors. A towel is a very good idea if you are entering the pup-cup sprint.
Will there be food?
Yes — food trucks along the north path for humans, and treat vendors throughout Vendor Village for the dogs. There are shaded picnic tables near the main stage.
Will there be adoptable dogs there?
Rescue Row hosts our partner rescues every year, and most bring adoptable dachshunds and dachshund mixes. Which dogs come depends on who is in foster care that week, so check their pages before you fall in love.
How do I sign up to be a vendor, sponsor or volunteer?
Applications open in the spring. Head to the Get Involved section for the vendor and sponsor forms and the volunteer sign-up sheet, or email us and we will point you to the right one.
Four easy steps
How to Enter the Derby
Registration opens in July and closes when the lanes are full — usually a week or two before the festival.
1
Pick a Division
Standard, mini, senior or puppy. If you are not sure, enter standard — we sort it out at check-in.
2
Register Online
Fill out the entry form with your dog’s name, age and weight. Entry is $15 and goes to our rescue partners.
3
Check In by 11:00
Find the derby tent, grab your bib number and bandana, and take your photo at the start line.
4
Run (Or Don’t)
Heats start at 11:30. Sprinting, wandering and lying down in the middle of the lane are all valid strategies.
Glory awaits
Contests & Competitions
Four ways for your dog to bring home a ribbon, and one way for them to eat a whipped-cream cup faster than you thought possible.
👑
Costume Contest
Best costume, best duo and best dog-and-human match. Judged on the main stage at 10:30am.
$5 entry
🎪
Wiener Limbo
How low can your long dog go? The bar drops until only one belly is left crawling. Undefeated champions welcome.
$5 entry
🍦
Pup-Cup Sprint
One pup cup, one dog, one clock. Messiest event of the day and easily the most popular. Bring a towel.
$5 entry
📏
Longest Wiener
Nose to tail, measured by an official and extremely serious tape measure. Standard and mini divisions.
$5 entry
Contests are first come, first served on the day of the event — sign up at the info tent when you arrive. Cash and cards both work.
Mark your calendar
Get Your Wiener on the List
Derby spots fill up fast and contest slots are first come, first served on the day of the festival. Sign up early so your long dog gets a lane.
📅
When
Saturday, September 19, 2026
Rain or shine — the dogs don’t care
⏰
Hours
10:00am – 4:00pm
Gates open at 10 sharp
📍
Where
Fairgrounds Park, Loveland
700 S Railroad Ave, Loveland, CO
🎟️
Cost
Free admission
Contests $5 each · Derby entry $15
What’s going on
Everything Happening at the Park
Six hours, one park, and more short legs than you have ever seen in one place.
🏆
Dachshund Derby
Heats run all morning by size and age, with the fastest four meeting in the afternoon final. Entry is $15 and every dollar goes to rescue.
👑
Costume Contest
Hot dogs, bumblebees, tiny cowboys and at least one dinosaur. Judged on the main stage at 10:30 — $5 to enter, sign up at the gate.
🛍️
Vendor Village
Forty-plus makers, bakers and small businesses with treats, harnesses, art and merch. Food trucks for the two-legged crowd sit along the north path.
Be part of it
Get Involved
It takes about ninety volunteers, forty vendors and a very patient sound guy to put this on. Pick your lane.
🛍️
Become a Vendor
Ten-by-ten spaces in Vendor Village, with pet-focused makers and small businesses given first pick. Applications open each March and close when we run out of grass.
🤝
Become a Sponsor
Three tiers, from stage naming rights down to a banner on the derby rail. Sponsorship is what keeps admission free — and it puts your name in front of a very loyal local crowd.
🙋
Volunteer
Three-hour shifts at the gate, the derby lanes, the info tent or clean-up. You get a t-shirt, a snack, and the moral high ground for the rest of the year.
So what is this, exactly?
A Lot of Dachshunds. A Lot of People Who Love Them.
That’s basically Weinerfest. One Saturday every September, Fairgrounds Park fills up with the longest, lowest, waggiest dogs in Northern Colorado — plus the people, vendors and rescues who adore them.
We started in 2022 with a folding table, one racing lane and about forty dachshunds. Today it’s a full festival day: derby heats, costume contests, a vendor village, live music and Rescue Row. Admission is free, all breeds are welcome, and every dollar we raise goes back to dachshund rescue and IVDD awareness.
The main event
The Dachshund Derby
Thirty feet of grass, a finish line, and absolutely no guarantee your dog runs in the right direction. Racers go off in heats by size and age all morning, with the four fastest wieners meeting in the afternoon final for the Derby Cup and a very large ribbon.
Entry is $15 per dog and includes a bandana, a bib number and a photo at the line. Every entry fee goes straight to our rescue partners.
Why we do this
Rescue Row
Weinerfest exists to put dachshunds in good homes. Rescue Row sits at the center of the park, where our partner rescues bring adoptable dogs, answer questions and talk through what life with a long dog actually looks like.
It’s also where we talk about IVDD — the spinal condition that affects roughly one in four dachshunds. Stop by to learn the early warning signs, the ramp-and-no-stairs basics, and what a diagnosis really means.
One day only
Bring your wiener. Bring your friends. Bring your appetite.
Plan your day
Day-Of Schedule
Times are approximate — we run on dachshund standard time.
10:00 am
Gates Open
Vendor Village and Rescue Row open. Contest and derby sign-ups start at the info tent.
10:30 am
Costume Contest
Main stage. Best costume, best duo and best dog-and-human match, judged by a panel of very biased volunteers.
11:30 am
Derby Heats Begin
Racing lanes. Heats run back to back by size and age — check the board for your dog’s lane and time.
12:30 pm
Wiener Limbo & Longest Wiener
Main stage. Two contests back to back while the derby lanes reset for the afternoon.
1:15 pm
Pup-Cup Sprint
Main stage. Bring a towel and low expectations for tidiness.
2:15 pm
Derby Final
Racing lanes. The four fastest wieners of the day run for the Derby Cup. Get there early for a spot on the rail.
3:00 pm
Awards & Raffle Drawing
Main stage. Ribbons for every division plus the raffle draw — you do not need to be present to win, but it is more fun if you are.
4:00 pm
Gates Close
Go home, nap with your dog. You have both earned it.
Don’t miss it
Get the Weinerfest Newsletter
Four emails a year, max: when derby registration opens, when vendor applications go live, the week-of parking and schedule details, and a thank-you with the final rescue total.
No spam, no sharing your address, unsubscribe any time.
Made possible by
Our 2026 Sponsors
Weinerfest is free to attend because these Northern Colorado businesses pick up the tab. Every sponsorship dollar past our costs goes to dachshund rescue.
Top Dog Sponsors
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Best in Show Sponsors
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Four years in
Weinerfest by the Numbers
1,412
Dachshunds counted in 2025
$22k
Raised for rescue since 2022
43
Vendors & food trucks
86
Adoptions from Rescue Row
Blame these people
The Hosts
Five volunteers, one shared group chat, and a spreadsheet none of us fully understands.
Name Here
Founder & President
Name Here
Derby Host
Name Here
Vendors & Village
Name Here
Marketing & Socials
Name Here
Contests & Raffles