Trent Weitzel is used to feeding crowds at huge events, like the National Buffalo Chicken Wing Festival, Cheyenne Frontier Days and NFL games. Turns out, his award-winning buffalo wings are a hit anytime, anywhere.
Just ask the busy firefighters and first responders with the Vedauwoo Volunteer Fire Department, who spent part of Sunday evening on a call along Interstate 80 between Laramie and Cheyenne.
Weitzel and his Weitzels Wings (aka Double Dubs) food truck cranked up the fryers and served up the nation’s best buffalo wings to the busy firefighters.
They were at the scene for a vehicle fire that caused a traffic jam that stretched 13 miles long. Weitzel in his “Double Dubs” food truck was caught up behind the fire and was looking for a way around the slowdown.
“We were coming back from cooking in Cheyenne, just heading back home,” he said. “We were right at Buford, and then I saw that there was a crash like 13 miles ahead. So, I tried to get around the crash, basically.”
And the responders literally couldn’t have hoped for a better wing truck to happen by.
Not only were they fed, they chowed down on the best buffalo chicken wings in America. That’s not just hyperbole, Weitzel and his team have the hardware to prove it as the two-time reigning Festival Favorite winners at the annual National Buffalo Chicken Wing Festival in Buffalo, New York.
If I’m Here Already …
The truck successfully got as far as he could before he also was stopped because of the accident. That’s when Weitzel learned some of the first responders hadn’t eaten dinner that evening and anticipated at least another hour on the scene.
“A couple of them said they had been out since 6 p.m., and they didn’t get dinner,” he said. “And they were probably going to be out all night. They were dealing with a couple of other crashes too, and that one was worse (than the others).”
Seeing as he was stuck too, Weitzel decided to use his time generously. He and the Weitzel’s Wings crew fired up the fryers and spent an hour cooking wings for the firefighters, Wyoming Highway Patrol troopers and other first responders on the scene.
Given their truck set a world record last year by selling 48,083 wings in 24 hours, they easily cooked up enough for everyone. The fryers were still warm, so Weitzel made the most of it for everyone.
“I said, ‘I'll cook some wings up for you,’ and then just kind of went from there,” he said. “They loved it and were really appreciative.”
Heat For The Firefighters
Weitzel was happy to help the firefighters, even if being stuck behind a 13-mile traffic jam on I-80 wasn’t how he was planning to spend Sunday evening.
“It wasn't me going straight up there,” he said. “I just happened to be at the right place at the right time.”
The firefighters certainly appreciated the roadside service. Both the Vedauwoo Volunteer Fire Department and Albany County Fire District 1 Central thanked Weitzel’s Wings “for being so kind and thoughtful” that night.
And which of the Double Dubs flavors was the favorite with firefighters?
“Obviously, the hot ones,” Weitzel said. “I did a platter of different wings, and they got the traditional WW3, which is hot buffalo sauce. You have to have the hot wings for the firefighters.”
Andrew Rossi can be reached at arossi@cowboystatedaily.com.
