ELDORA MOUNTAIN RESORT – Eldora Mountain Resort was founded in 1962 to provide skiing for Boulder area residents and to serve as training grounds for the Colorado Buffaloes Ski Team.

Over the 63 years that Eldora has been their home mountain, the Buffs have won 21 NCAA Skiing Championships. The best in the nation last year, CU finished a respectable second place behind Utah this season.

Every year on a Saturday in April the team holds its annual Nor-Alp Schralp race at Eldora to honor the CU Buffs’ skiing legacy and celebrate their latest campaign with fellow teammates.

The twist is that Nordic and Alpine skiers must participate in each other’s discipline. Even though it’s a friendly get-together, as seasoned collegiate competitors with a need for speed, they still give their all.

At the April 12, 2025 Schralp, one Nordic skier and one Alpine skier of opposite genders were paired as teams. Each team member was allotted two runs down the slalom course. Outside of their sphere of expertise, many of the Nordic skiers struggled, while Alpine skiers received a one-second penalty each time they touched a gate. Their best times were combined to determine the winners.

In the Nordic portion of the competition at the base area, the elbow-to-elbow mass start added excitement. Schralp teammates alternated laps for a total of four times around the abbreviated track. Nordic skiers whipped through the course with ease and Alpine skiers did the best they could.

The resulting thrills and spills entertained with smiles all around to wrap up another successful year for the Buffs.