Ralphie Makes A Splash In Regatta

BOULDER — As any good Colorado Buffaloes fan knows, the "Ralphie" logo is one of the most recognized and most popular college logos in the United States.

There is no mistaking the distinctive logo, and no doubt to whom it belongs. Anywhere, anyplace it's seen, it immediately brings "Colorado Buffaloes" to mind. It can be found on hats, caps, coats, luggage, sweaters, shirts, backpacks, scarves, stationery — just about anywhere a logo can be displayed.

But CU alum and ardent supporter Tim Harrington recently found a spot for Ralphie that may be a first — on the spinnaker of his boat, an E-scow vessel that he regularly sails on Grand Lake in the mountains of Colorado.

True to form, Harrington also made sure Ralphie had a successful debut.

Over the Fourth of July weekend, Harrington ripped the spinnaker on his boat beyond repair. He knew he would need one for the upcoming Grand Lake Regatta (conducted by the Grand Lake Yacht Club, officially recognized as the world's highest registered yacht club), so when he prepared to order a new one, he decided it would be one that would make a splash.

"They're not cheap," Harrington said. "I said if I'm going to get one, it's going to be one that people will remember."

Harrington then contacted CU Athletic Department officials to get permission to use the logo.

Then he ordered the spinnaker.

Then he waited. And waited.

It arrived just one day before the opening race in the regatta, and he packed it alone.

"I didn't tell anybody what was on it," he said. "Nobody. I didn't tell my crew, I didn't tell my wife, I didn't tell anybody."

On the day of the race, as the boats sailed to the starting line, Harrington kept the spinnaker under wraps. While most other competitors unfurled theirs on the way to the start line, Harrington refused.

"My crew (his daughter, son-in-law and nephew, all of whom are also big CU fans) kept telling me to put it up and I wouldn't," Harrington said. "They were actually getting kind of mad because they knew we had a new one and they wanted to practice. All I would say was, 'Nope, it's not coming out.'"

Unbeknownst to his crew, Harrington had a plan — and he executed it to perfection.

"In the race, whoever is first around the first mark gets to pop their spinnaker first," Harrington said. "Sure enough, we were lucky enough to get around that first mark in first place. That's when I threw that spinnaker up — and everyone just started screaming. It was amazing."

Even the other boats in the race — along with roughly 40 or 50 spectator boats — were taken by surprise.

"Here we are in an intense competition, and everyone — everyone — is yelling, 'Go Buffs,'" Harrington said. "It was exhilarating. Everyone is yelling and screaming, everyone is taking pictures. The secret worked perfectly. I couldn't have planned it better."

True to form, Ralphie — um, Harrington — won the race that day, streaming across the finish line ahead of the field.

"There are a lot of CU fans up on the lake — and a lot of CSU fans as well," Harrington said. "The neat thing was even the CSU fans admitted it was pretty cool."

Harrington and his wife, Melinda, are both CU grads and long-time CU season ticket holders. One of their daughters, Hilary, and her husband, Eddie Kane, are part of his crew, as is his nephew, Thomas Harrington.

All are what Harrington described as "huge" CU fans.

"When they saw it, they couldn't believe it," Harrington said. "We're right in the middle of a race, and for a second, they just stared and yelled. It was amazing to see it come up in the wind like it did."

After the race, Harrington texted a photo of the spinnaker to CU Athletic Director Rick George.

"He texted me right back," Harrington said with a laugh. "He said it was awesome."

Harrington and his family played a significant role in CU's Sustainable Excellence Initiative, which supported the construction of the new Champions Center.

"Melinda and I had lunch with Rick on his second day on the job when he got here," Harrington said. "He told us he had a new design for the facility and that we would be very favorably impressed — and by golly, he did exactly what he said he was going to do. He's done a phenomenal job since the day he got here."

But not even CU's athletic director has crewed Ralphie to a regatta win.

"On the night after the race, we were sitting at our dock and one of the oldest sailors in the club, Scally O'Donnell, drives his boat over to our dock," Harrington said. "He's 86 years old and a CU grad. He stops his boat, then starts singing the CU fight song. I'm not sure even I realized when I did it that putting Ralphie on the spinnaker would get so many people excited."

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