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University of Colorado Athletics

Events & Programming Updates for CU Student-Athletes

• Click on each section below for more information

Athletic Facilities in the Champions Center, Dal Ward, and CUEC are CLOSED to the public. If you do not know the person and aren't comfortable asking who they are, get the nearest staff member for help. 

Toy Drive! 

Volunteer to collect Toys before the below games: 

Sunday 11/12 WBB vs. Oklahoma State at 4pm 

Sunday 12/3 MBB vs. Pepperdine at 3pm 

Sign up here.  

Buffs Give Back

Interested in volunteering and giving back to our community? 

Please click here to see an active list of volunteer opportunities in the area.  

If you are interested in signing up or if you want to explore other opportunities please contact our Community Outreach Team; 

Mikeitta Williams - [email protected] or Rachel Ripken - [email protected] . 

Check back for updates soon!

SAVE THE DATE!

Native American Heritage Month Celebration is November 14th at 6:30pm in NerdWallet Touchdown Club! Come learn more about Native culture and traditions. This event is Alston eligible.

Lunch and Listen 

Join us for our last lunch and learn of the year on November 16th at 12pm in NerdWallet Touchdown Club. We will be talking about music and rhetoric. This event is Alston eligible. 

Hear Our Herd:

Hear Our Herd is a brave conversation where Student-Athletes get to share their stories and their experiences on numerous topics. Full episode live on BuffsTV on YouTube and CU Buffs on Facebook. Click the links below to watch our newest episodes. 

Episode 1: Belonging Is… 

Episode 2: National Girls & Women in Sports Day 

Episode 3: Black Student-Athlete Experience 

Episode 4: Women's History Month

Team Meetings/DEI Workshop:

The DEI staff can complete a DEI workshop for teams at the request of student-athletes or coaches. Please reach out to [email protected] to learn how to request one.

Want to meet with Faculty Athletics Rep Dr. Joe Jupille? He will hold office hours on Thursday, Nov. 9th from 11:15-12:45 in Study Room #9! Get in touch with him here:

Cell: 303-217-6835

Email: [email protected]

We've moved! (down the hall)

Sadie's new office is Champs 520F - where LCD Katherine used to be

Abbey's new office is Champs 520G - where LCD Lauren used to be

Sign up here to participate in the Colorado NIL Store , powered by Campus Ink. New signees are active on the website in 2-3 weeks. Answer “N/A” to the jersey number question if it doesn't apply to your sport (Cross Country/Track & Field, Golf, Ski, Tennis) 

Abbey | Champs 520G | [email protected]   &   Sadie | Champs 520F | [email protected]

Student-athletes may NOT sell or exchange complimentary tickets for money or an item of value. Doing this will result in loss of eligibility!

Ask Before You Act! Please reach out to [email protected] with any questions or concerns.

Fueling Station Hours of Fall Break WILL CHANGE! Stay tuned for updates!

Normal Fueling Station Hours:

• Breakfast Hours:   6:00 a.m. – 8:30 a.m. **Grab n’ go available until 9:00 a.m.
• Lunch Hours:   11:00 a.m. – 1:30 p.m.
• Dinner Hours : 5:00 p.m. – 7:00 p.m.

All student athletes are REQUIRED TO CHECK IN on the CU Athlete App at each meal

Gold Card Program

• For those of you “off campus” and a part of our Gold Card program you will receive $50 per wk. for this Fall semester

Find this week's menu here!

CLICK HERE TO REQUEST AN IN-PERSON OR VIRTUAL APPOINTMENT WITH PHP!! . 

PHP HAS MOVED LOCATIONS! WE ARE NOW ON THE 2ND FLOOR OF DAL WARD IN SUITE 250

Free Calm Subscription: The world's #1 app for mental fitness, Calm is a meditation and sleep app that is made to suit your schedule and needs. All CU student-athletes now have access to a free Calm subscription! 

• To unlock your free subscription, click here !
• Once on the page, create an account or sign in to your existing Calm account.
• Then, use your Colorado email (e.g. [email protected]) in the box provided to activate the subscription on your Calm account.
• Finally, download the Calm app onto your phone and log in to access your premium account!

Power to Perform Podcast: Each month, PHP will feature a student-athlete on our P2P Podcast, covering all things mental health and performance.

• Click here to access the podcasts!
• Interested in being on the P2P Podcast this spring?? We're switching it up by having a different athlete featured each month to highlight different sports, genders, and perspectives! Please reach out to PHP at 303-735-7182 if interested!

Bolder Buffs : Next meeting is Tuesday, December 5th at 12pm in the Touchdown Club! This is an Alston Opportunity! 

BUFFS HELPLINE

•    For 24/7/365 immediate mental health support, our Buffs Helpline is available to all of our student-athletes. Please call 303-735-7182 and press 9 if you need to speak with a mental health provider.

WALK-IN HOURS

•    Walk-in hours are M/W 10:00 a.m.- Noon and T/TH 1:00 p.m. - 3:00 p.m. To access “walk-in hours”, please call PHP at 303-735-7182 or walk into our office, located on the 1st floor of Dal Ward. 

Follow us on Instagram: @cubuffsphp for more tips, quotes, and mental stuff 

What is SAAC?

SAAC is an active group of student leaders from each of CU's athletic programs.  The student-led group is dedicated to providing a voice for the interests and concerns of all student-athletes at CU.  Involvement is open to any student-athlete willing to make the commitment to serve on behalf of their peers.

There are various sub-committees around Diversity and Inclusive Excellence, Student-Athlete Welfare, Career and Leadership Development, Event Planning, Environmental Responsibility and Community Outreach.  SAAC members receive educational opportunities on legislation and provide their feedback on initiatives run by the Athletic Department, Pac-12 and NCAA.  SAAC members often participate on campus and department committees and serve valuable roles that provide insight to administrators.

Interested in SAAC? Please fill out the form here. 

For questions and more information please contact [email protected].

ANNOUNCEMENTS:

WE ARE HOSTING WEEKLY OFFICE HOURS! Visit our new offices in the LCD Suite - first floor of Dal Ward every Tuesday and Wednesday from 11:00 AM - 1:00 PM.

Have you landed a great job or internship? Let LCD know!

Sports Camps of America Internship Opportunity - Summer 2024 in Japan. To find info and apply, click here.

UPCOMING EVENT:

FYP Fall #2 11/15, 6:00-7:00 PM, NerdWallet Touchdown Club. Topic : Housing & Budgeting Basics. Mandatory for all first-year student-athletes. If you have a class conflict, let us know before the event. Alston eligible.

OPPORTUNITIES:

The Buff Club is hosting a Thank-a-thon Nov 15-16 and are looking for any student-athlete interested in making a few phone calls to sign-up below. If you would like to participate, click here.

TD Securities is hosting the 2024 Invest in Success Program, a two-day educational and cultural immersion program for sophomores (class of 2026) interested in being considered for the 2025 Summer Analyst Program. This program is available to all majors and backgrounds, including those who identify as Black, LatinX, LGBTQ+, female, or are a U.S. military veteran. The program will allow participants to visit our New York office and receive access to career panels and networking opportunities, while experiencing the inclusive and collaborative culture of TD Securities. For more information and to apply by December 1st, click here !

REMINDERS: 

Don’t forget to set up your Fall Semester meeting with your LCD Liaison! These meetings are mandatory! Meeting links: Lauren | Katherine | Dave | Rodrick

CU ATHLETE APP - Make sure to RSVP to all departmental events by using the CU Athlete App, formerly known as the Fueling Station app. 

Download the app here | Registration Code: 9283961

To RSVP: Click the Events button on the bottom right, find the events you are interested in, and toggle the RSVP button to green. If you need help getting access, let us know!

C Club REMINDERS:

Graduating or departing CU this fall? Get to know the Alumni C Club and learn about your benefits as a letterwinner. Meet Kimbirly Orr, Executive Director, Champs 520D.

As a student-athlete in good standing here at the University of Colorado, you receive a complimentary ticket to every home, regular-season sporting event via your Buff OneCard

Men's Basketball & Women's Basketball  @ CU Events Center = enter through the SOUTHWEST doors - NOT the main Ticket Office - this is different from volleyball! 

When attending basketball games at CUEC, always sit in the designated student sections (13-17 behind the south basket) or the general admission areas. The north riser sections (folding chairs on either side of the tunnel) are paid seats during basketball season - DO NOT SIT THERE!

Football @ Folsom Field = student-athlete window of the Franklin Field ticket booth, the brick building on the Buff Walk at the southeast corner of the stadium 

• All students must receive a wristband upon entrance to indicate you are able to sit in the student section
• The first 34 student-athletes in line at the Franklin Field ticket booth will be able to enter the stadium 15 minutes early & will receive a second wristband indicating your reserved 1st row spot 
• This entrance is only for you , your NARP friends must use a different entrance
• Inside the stadium, you must enter the student section using the stairs between sections 116 & 117
• CU Athletics urges all students to refrain from entering the field after the game – “rushing the field” greatly jeopardizes the safety of players, coaches, staff & other fans. Doing so is also a costly violation of University & Pac-12 regulations

Volleyball @ the CU Events Center  = enter through the Ticket Office doors at the northwest corner of CUEC

* At all events *

• Be aware of the Clear Bag Policy - this includes factory-sealed or empty plastic water bottles only! ‘Real’ water bottles + selfie/GoPro Sticks will be confiscated
• Only get in line when you are ready to go into the game – you must go straight into the facility once you pick up your ticket, you cannot get a ticket for (or on behalf of) anyone else
• There is no re-entry ; if you leave the facility at any time, you will not be allowed back in
• Even if your locker room is in the CUEC, you must claim a ticket at the student-athlete entrance to attend a game
• Always sit in the designated student section or general admission areas. Do not take a paying customer's seat! 
• Please be respectful & courteous to fellow Buffs fans, visiting fans, stadium staff & officials. As a student-athlete, you are very visible. Because people know who you are, you represent our department & our university at all times. Game day is a marathon, not a sprint – make good decisions!

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Some colleges have mascots — CU-Boulder has a 1,600-pound buffalo named Ralphie

CU-Boulder’s tradition of Running with Ralphie first started in 1967 and is a highlight of every home game.

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This is the last in a series of three videos on college sports traditions with Four Points by Sheraton. Watch the first episode on Texas A&M’s yell leaders here and the second episode on Notre Dame’s band here .

Some colleges have marching bands. Others have cheerleaders; and others still have mascots. The University of Colorado Boulder has all of that, but it’s the only university that has Ralphie. Ralphie is the living mascot of CU-Boulder — a 1,600-pound female buffalo that has represented the school in athletic competitions since 1966. At the start of each home football game, Ralphie sprints onto Folsom Field ahead of the football team, guided by five Ralphie handlers. Four handlers run alongside her gripping her reins, and one supplies the brakes by holding her reins in the back. The rest of the team scatters around the field, guiding Ralphie in a horseshoe-shaped run in front of 7,000 cheering fans.

Ralphie handlers are an elite varsity team at CU-Boulder that consists of about 15 student-athletes. And since Ralphie can reach speeds of up to 25 miles per hour, the requirements for Ralphie handlers are rigorous. In a typical year of tryouts, only four new members are selected out of a field of 75 hopeful handlers. Ralphie handlers practice twice a week and spend 20 to 30 hours per week training, practicing, doing appearances, and caring for Ralphie.

Since 1966, the role of Ralphie has been filled by five different buffalos. The current Ralphie, Ralphie V, has served in her role since 2008 and has run a total of 60 games. “Ralphie has a personality,” says Rachel Demby, a Ralphie handler and junior at CU-Boulder. “She is sassy, she’s sweet, she’s angry sometimes. I kind of tell people she’s like any other woman.”

Watch Demby tell the story of Ralphie’s tradition in the video above.

Experience your own traditions when you stay at Four Points by Sheraton. With over 150 properties throughout the U.S. and Canada, you’ll never be far from a college football game day location.

Local News | CU Boulder has engraved Ralphie on every space…

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Local news | cu boulder has engraved ralphie on every space instrument for more than 30 years, cu boulder logo has traveled more than 5 billion miles in space.

Since the 1980s, the University of Colorado Boulder has carved an image of Ralphie on every instrument that’s gone to space on more than a dozen missions.

It’s become a CU Boulder tradition for Ralphie and the school logo to be engraved into aluminum exteriors and even sewn into a thermal blanket on every instrument that goes to space.

“I think it’s great,” Frank Eparvier, associate director for science at CU Boulder’s Laboratory for Atmospheric and Space Physics, said. “I think it shows our school pride and pride of wanting to send our mark out into space, and a lot of these probes will be out there forever.”

Thomas Sparn, director of engineering at LASP, said the tradition began when CU Boulder was building an instrument for a 1986 mission called Spartan Halley . It was an experiment to observe Halley’s comet, and CU Boulder designed the instrument meant to do so. The instrument was lost when the spacecraft exploded shortly after launch.

When they were building the instrument, Sparn said, he noticed that the camera that would’ve broadcasted the observations had a view of a blank piece of thermal blanket. The team decided to add an image of Ralphie on it so when camera faced that direction, it would send a picture of Ralphie to the world.

“After that, we all decided it was a great idea and we all started engraving it,” Sparn said.

Ralphie’s first successful mission to space was in 1991. Machinists at LASP engraved an image of CU Boulder’s logo onto an instrument called SOLar STellar Irradiance Comparison Experiment where it orbited around the Earth and measured ultraviolet radiation from the sun.

LASP also engraves all the names of people who work on the instrument.

Sparn said sometimes they even shape part of the build of the instrument into the shape of Ralphie. For example, manufacturing a bracket in the shape of Ralphie so it becomes a mechanical part.

Eparvier said Ralphie’s likeness has orbited Earth and Mars and has gone to Saturn, Mercury and Jupiter. Soon, she will head on a mission toward Jupiter’s moon. Ralphie was aboard all five instruments on the Solar Radiation and Climate Experiment spacecraft — which launched in 2003 and operated for 17 years.

“Ralphie’s been all over the solar system,” Eparvier said.

Machinists at LASP use an instrument called a CNC mill to make laser engravings on the aluminum parts of space instruments. It takes only 10 minutes to engrave Ralphie into the instrument in a way that’s safe for space travel.

Ralphie’s image has covered a total of 5 billion miles in space, with more to come. There are four new space instruments that are slated to launch in the next few years.

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