BRECKENRIDGE, Colo. — People landed on the Moon decades before someone ever skied as fast as CJ Mueller, and now, he's finally getting the recognition he deserves.
The longtime "ski bum," a legend in Breckenridge, recently got the nod to be inducted in the next class of the U.S. Ski and Snowboard Hall of Fame.
In 1987, he became the first person ever to eclipse 130 mph on skis, and emerged as a pioneer in a sport known as speed skiing. In 1992, the niche concentration got a demo at the Winter Olympics, but was never promoted to the regular cast.
"It was kind of a surprise to me. I look at myself as just kind of a run-of-the-mill ski bum who happened to get involved in speed skiing," he said over a Zoom call after a morning of hitting the slopes. "Hopefully, they will continue to recognize some of the top speeds skiers that we've had in the past."
In the above story, you hear from Mueller about what it felt like to careen down a mountain at 130 mph.