A night on the buff bus. (Matt Sisneros/CU Independent)
Weekends at the University of Colorado can get pretty wild. Playboy ranked CU the number three party school on its national list this year. Even something as innocuous as the Buff Bus, which by day shuttles students from the Williams Village dorm to campus and back, can be an extension of the parties that happen every weekend.
The buses are free for students and a popular way to get across campus to reach parties that would otherwise be a long walk away. On the Buff Bus, a ride from Williams Village to the Hill only takes about five minutes.
On a recent night, this freedom created a relaxed environment, with no one worrying about being seen intoxicated or drinking underage. The partygoers trickled in between 9 and 10 p.m, and the usually-quiet bus became louder.
“Sometimes they sing along to the music, but there’s usually no major drama,” said Wade Lichti, a Buff Bus driver. “Ninety-five percent of them are good.”
Gradually, larger groups arrived. A woman walked onto the bus holding a Red Bull and an unmarked bottle. The driver never batted an eye.
Most passengers exited at the C4C stop and a woman yelled “I’m so drunk right now” as she exited the back of the bus. Her friends laughed.
Though each night is different, the barf bags at the front of the bus indicate that some nights are more intense than others.
One time, Lichti heard a smash and saw that someone had broken one of the mirrors at the back of the bus. Lichti said the culprits escaped before he could catch them. This is when the CU Police Department gets involved.
“Occasionally there are times when [CUPD] comes on because someone’s passed out on the bus, or there’s criminal activity on the bus, but that doesn’t happen very often,” campus police spokesperson Ryan Huff said.
Lichti thinks that it may be his age–about the same as many riders’ parents–that keeps the kids in line, compared to some of the student drivers he works with.
Buff Bus driver and senior psychology major Sada Pan has driven the bus for three years without incident, but narrowly missed a fight after another driver took over her shift for the night.
“This guy got really angry with some other guy, and he shoved his head through a window,” Pan said. “I’m so glad I wasn’t driving that night.”
The loud volume and obvious drinking does not bother her. Most of the time, nobody speaks to her while she drives.
A few weeks ago, Lillian Waters, a 19-year-old sophomore international affairs major, boarded the bus by the UMC and found herself with a group of intoxicated and scantily-clad men in funny hats who had just completed the Nearly Naked Mile.
“They were spraying silly string as they got off the bus, yelling at each other, ‘Have fun, man,” Waters said. “They even tried to spray me and my friend Emma. It was kind of hilarious.”
“It’s so much friendlier [on the bus] when people are drunk. Riding the Buff Bus at night is just a unique experience overall.”
Contact CU Independent Staff Writer Hannah Blatter at Hannah.blatter@colorado.edu.
