Six decades after becoming one of the first Broncos cheerleaders, former "Broncette" still roots for Denver every week
At the age of 76, Nancy Alfsen can still twirl a baton pretty well. The Colorado sports fan was expert at it as a teen, and got the chance of a lifetime when the Broncos formed in 1960.
When she was 14, Alfsen auditioned to become a Denver Broncos cheerleader. They were called "the Broncettes" then. She made it.
"It was really fun. It was work, but it was fun, when they presented the colors before the game. Whatever band was doing that, we were in front of them and we were doing our routine," she said.
Everything was good until one game when a player accidentally ran into a Broncette.
"She got tackled. Broke her leg, so the next year I think you needed to be 18," Alfsen said.
Being too young, she couldn't cheer or twirl for the team anymore. And she never got a chance to meet her favorite Broncos player -- Bud McFadin.
"He was one of the first Broncos that came off the bus when we were greeting them when they came to Denver and I just saw those big blue eyes and sighed," she said.
She never met her second favorite player, either: John Elway.
"But I bought two cars from him," she joked, referring to the auto dealership that bears Elway's name.
Alfsen left cheerleading behind to become a registered nurse. She wound up working as a nurse for 30 years.
And more than six decades after becoming a Broncette, she still roots for the Broncos every week.
"What do you think of the Broncos this season?" CBS News Colorado's Michelle Griego asked her.
"I love them, so it doesn't matter if they win 1 or none, they're my team."
