Unique Phrases or Words? (Denver, Fort Collins: school, living in, license plates)

[schoolproject007]

Hello,
I am working on a school project right now on dialect in Colorado. I was wondering if anybody from Colorado could help me out. What unique phrases are used in Colorado? Are there unique words used there?
I would really appreciate any help I could get, especially from people who live in the state.
Thanks!

[bongo]

From my years living all over Colorado, the term "mud season" comes to mind LOL! Another one "4-wire winter." "Ski bum" "rocky mountain oysters" "mile-high city" "front range" "the Springs"

Have fun!

[schoolproject007]

Thanks so much for the reply! What does that mean?

[CAVA1990]

Originally Posted by bongo

From my years living all over Colorado, the term "mud season" comes to mind LOL! Another one "4-wire winter." "Ski bum" "rocky mountain oysters" "mile-high city" "front range" "the Springs"

Have fun!

Mud season was stolen from Vermonters. Northeasterners likely imported it.

[jim9251]

I've only lived here for a few years but so far:

Howdy (hello)
Grub (food)
front range (the eastern slope of the Rocky Mountains)
western slope (the western slope of the Rocky Mountains)
Windy Season
Mud Season (spring thaw)
Tourist Season
Mile High City (Denver)
Olathe Sweet Sweet Corn (a very sweet corn grown in Olathe area)
Paonia Purple (a strain of marijuana grown in the Paonia region)
Rocky Mountain Oysters (bull testicles)
Snow snakes, snow fleas (a joke played on tourists "watch out for the snow snakes")

[schoolproject007]

Thank you so much!

[CAVA1990]

SkiBike Slang

[livecontent]

The most unique word that comes to my mind is the "14er" which refers to the Mountain Peaks that are over 14,000 feet. Some climbers will brag that they have climbed all the 14ers in Colorado.

Locations names are unique and specific. Denver has a area of Downtown that is called LoDo, which is lower downtown. Fort Collins would be called The Fort. Flatirons, a type of foothill mountain formation in Boulder. Lookout Mountain, overlooks Denver and Buffalo Bill is buried at the top. The Palmer Divide which is a ridge near Palmer. The Hogback, a ridge of expose rocks that resemble the back of a hog, just west in the suburbs of Denver. The Valley Highway is often referred by old timers to the name of I-25 through Denver. Auraria an old area and place name of Denver.

Livecontent

[Mike from back east]

Here's two more:

1. NATIVE. Refers to the accident of birth that one is born, raised and living in COLO. This special status is often pointed out via a bumper sticker that says, simply, NATIVE. A subset of these born-here types share a delusion that somehow they are better than the millions of people who've moved here over the years. Term is highly disrespectful of ACTUAL natives (e.g., Ute, Comanche, Anasazi, Jicarilla Apache, et al) who were here a thousand years before all of us, as well as Hispanics of Mexican origin as the lower half of Colorado WAS indeed a part of MEXICO until about 1848. The "native" bumper sticker is unique to COLO, the other 49 states, and their citizens, apparently aren't very special.

2. PIONEER. Refers to one being related to persons who came to Colorado for the Gold Rush and Land Rush events of Colorado history. Pioneers were the people who first put a steel plow into dry grassland prairie in hopes of makes wealth in wheat, but instead ended up giving us the Dust Bowl. Rah! Many "natives" are the offspring of "pioneers" and share the same delusion of specialness. Status as a descendant of "pioneers" is deemed deserving of a special license plate remarkable for it's pastel colors and the word "pioneer" cast in the plate. The remarkable thing is that these special people are even willing to spend the extra money for these plates, even though they won't spend the money to keep our street lights on. The "pioneer" license plates are unique to COLO, the other 49 states and 310,000,000 other Americans and their ancestors apparently weren't very pioneering, even though my ancestors in the WHITE family came over on the Mayflower and the first child born of those "invaders" was a White family member.

Have a nice day.

[reed303]

flatlander = mainly easterners unfamiliar with high altitudes and mountain driving

jack-a-lope = fictional cross between jack rabbit & antelope (rabbit with horns)