We caught up with Cory Grove, the big dog behind Cobra Dogs, and he gave us the low-down on how his new hot-dog phenomenum is taking the shred world by storm. Like a dog in heat, Cory put down his camera, picked up a wiener, rolled the dice and set up a niché perrito caliente stand. Who let the dog's out? Cory did!
Hey Cory, explain to everyone what Cobra Dogs are?
Well, Cobra Dogs are a delicious after-snowboarding treat, as well as a movement of love for snowboarding and a champion small business.
When, how and why did you come up with the concept of Cobra Dogs?
It started with myself and Jesse Grandkoski just having a crazy idea. I would assume we were under the influence of marijuana, but I can't remember. Ha. We both always had crazy ideas for businesses and Cobra Dogs was one of them. The other idea he had was Airblaster, so to make a long story short, we pulled the trigger and the rest is history.
Did you expect it take off like this?
Not at all. Never in my wildest wiener dreams did I expect it to be anything more than the little trailer we first bought. Nor did I expect it to last more than a summer to be honest. It's been so crazy, I still to this day trip out on the success. Selling hot dogs to hungry shredders on a glacier after a long day's riding is a great concept and a niche market. It works for sure. Very niche! 
Weren't you also a professional photographer who worked for some of the biggest magazines and brands?
I did, that is how I started in the industry. It was actually a very serious career for me for a few years. I had a couple covers and was on staff for some brands like Sessions and did a lot of work for Burton as well. 
And why did you decide to put down the camera and pick up the wiener?
I didn't really plan on it at all. It just kinda worked out because I was getting burned out on the industry and the travel. Sounds crazy but I was home on average one day a month. I wanted to chill and live in my state for a while. But again, it wasn't a plan. Cobra Dogs took off and before I knew I was going at it full time.
You have a serious cult following now, do you think this is strange?
Oh, hell yes. So strange, but then again, not really. I think we just have a very good chemistry with the crew that works here and everybody has a good time when they are at Cobra Dogs. We really just try to do what we want and have fun. We work under the umbrella of "we need jobs but we also know life is short", and goddamn if we are not going to have fun with it. As for people repping, it's insane. We have a full roster. From Peter Line to the young bucks like Bundy, Bode, and Forest Bailey just to name a few. Matty Mo, our manager, is in charge of that and the list is so long. It's also a huge part of why we are getting the name out there, so many people have our backs. And the reason they have our backs is because we are all friends. No contracts here. 
Where exactly can we find the "Dogs on Wheels" trailer?
Mt. Hood (Government Camp) in the summer and Park City mountain resort in the winter. We have other plans in the pipeline but we can't talk about them right now. But I can say that we are eyeballing Tahoe and the East Coast. 
What are your plans for expansion or did it just happen naturally?
Nope. I told myself if I am still doing it after 5 years then I would expand. The 5 years also gave us enough time to really dial in our craft. It's funny to me that owning a hotdog stand is actually a dream come true, and now my life. It has been such an amazing adventure for me. I love it and I'm running with it as long as I can.
Now that you sell your dogs all year round, do you have different offerings for summer and winter?
We keep it pretty similar. We use the same dogs at both places. All hand-made in Portland and we make sure that we keep that going. We do have other things in the winter we don't have in the summer like hot cocoa, and slushies in the summer. For the most part you can expect the same line up of dogs at both places.
What is your personal favorite?
I go back and forth but right now it is the Cheddaconda. But my all-time favorite I would say is the All Beef Boa. Keep it simple.
And your famous Cobra sauce, I heard it's hot as balls?
It really isn't that hot. At least I don't think so. But yeah, I want to make a "Cobra Sauce 2.0" that is hot as fuck.
What is in it?
It has 7 different ingredients but it is a secret recipe. I can tell you a few of the ingredients: gypsy tears, the sweat from Peter Line's gloves and a whole lot of love from the team. 
You must have seen some fucked up shit during the last 6 years of serving dogs, what's one story that comes to mind?
Haha, for sure. Where do I start… I guess the Hot Dog Olympics was pretty good. Danny Kass and the Dingo did that. It was out the back of Cobra Dogs. There were campers puking all over the place and a full-on ketchup and mustard fight. I guess it is not that crazy but it sure was amazing. Every day something happens. It is such an amazing place to be in the summer.
Who holds the record for eating the most dogs?
Ohh, that is a good question. I really don't know, but the all-time record holder I would say is a toss-up between Bryan Fox, a High Cascade camper we call "Big Pete" or Kyle Fischer. 
I heard you hired a bunch of Mexicans to cook the wieners and you make them whistle the whole time so you know they aren't eating your dogs, is this true?
Yes, it's true. We call them Toby Miller and Red Gerard. If you got time to lean, you got time to clean!
Is there an art form to stacking condiments on your dogs or do you just slap everything on?
Again, another great question. YES. That is a big deal. Cream cheese on the bun first. Then, relish because it is the bit you put on top of your other toppings. Then shredded cheese, onions, jalepeños, sauerkraut, Cobra sauce, bacon bits, celery salt. Then you have the option of many different mustards and ketchups, which I fucking hate. 
Do you own a dog?
Nope. And I don't own a cobra either.