Colorado says farewell to Ralphie V, prepares for a new era
Today it was announced by the University of Colorado that Ralphie V, the 13-year-old live buffalo mascot who has led the Buffs football team onto Folsom Field for 12 seasons, was being retired.
Ralphie had not conducted her usual run around Folsom Field since the Buffaloes hosted Arizona on Oct. 5. In recent home games vs. USC and last Saturday.
According to Ralphie Program Manager John Graves, the retirement news comes not as a result of failing or ill health, but more naturally and out of concern related to the safety of the Ralphie Handlers plus the recent temperament of Ralphie herself.
“Ralphie V has always been the biggest and fastest Ralphie we’ve had," Graves said. "She loves to run and has always loved to run. What we started noticing in the second [art of the season was that she wasn’t really responding to the cues we give her at practices and for when it’s time for her to run. She was kind of taking things on her own terms and was just so excited to run that she wasn't always taking the cues off of us. She was just a little to excited to run.
"She has gradually become faster over her only career. She’s never really slowed down as past Ralphies have when they age — they slow down as they age but Ralphie V, her speed has keep increasing towards the end here. Based on how she’s been acting and her performance the past few weeks in practices, we made the decision that she was telling us it was time to retire."
Ralphie V ran the second-most games of the buffaloes who have served as CU's live mascots, leading the team on 76 occasions. Ralphie I ran a total of 78 games over the span of 12 seasons.
"Ralphie V has served the department and the university well," AD Rick George said. "She has been a very special buffalo and has truly been adored by many. We hope she lives for many years to come and look forward to finding her successor."
Fans can see Ralphie V publicly one last time on Nov. 23, before Colorado hosts Washington. After that, Ralphie will retire to roam her pastures in leisure, while still receiving daily supervision from Graves, who has known and worked with Ralphie V since she was six months old, and others in the Ralphie Handlers program.
“She’ll be there at Ralphie’s Corral before (the UW game)...(and after that,) just like every other day in Ralphie’s life, (she’ll) just be hanging out and grazing her pastures. She’ll just do it full time now.”
As Graves and the University of Colorado prepare to look back fondly on the past decade-plus of Ralphie V, unavoidably, the quest to locate and train Ralphie VI must begin, which it has.
“It’s already started," Graves said. "There’s a lot of criteria we look at for the next Ralphie. The next Ralphie needs to be a good fit. We look for a buffalo that wants to do the job like Ralphie V has always wanted to. We have been searching and identifying potential candidates."
Graves went onto admit that while having Ralphie VI trained and ready to run by the time of the 2020 season remains an uncertainty, it's fair to say that fans may very well see her at Folsom Field, even if she won't run.
"Looking back at the history of the Ralphie program, there have been a few games during the transition between buffaloes where there wasn’t a buffalo that ran but they stood on the sidelines to welcome the team on the field," Graves said. "It’s too early to look at that for this next season and what we will or will not do.”
As Graves begins his search for the young buffalo who will eventually become Ralphie VI, the handlers themselves will continue to train in the gym and learn more about buffaloes and buffalo behavior, three important areas that Ralphie Handlers must become proficient in as they build a relationship with Ralphie herself.
That’s why Ralphie Handlers are so successful — they really take the time to study prepare and train and also developing that bond with Ralphie," Graves said. "Ralphie responds to them, they respond to Ralphie and then they just develop a mutual friendship.”