Who Are Denver Broncos' Mascot Miles And Thunder?

The Denver Broncos are one of the teams from the AFC West division. This great city in the Rocky Mountains region of the country is called the Mile High City for its high elevation of 1 mile above sea level. The Broncos are part of a select few teams that have a live mascot. As a matter of fact, the team has two mascots, one is a live horse by the name of Thunder and the other is a costumed version of a stallion named Miles.

Having one mascot for a team is generally great. Most of the mascots, especially those who are not alive, are involved in numerous activities both on and off the field. They entertain the crowd, click pictures, perform various stunts, get the fans all hyped up for the game, and much more. Mascots such as Thunder, on the other hand, are used mostly as a cultural aspect. In this article, we will take a better look at both of them and their specific roles for the team.

Denver Broncos Mascot Miles

Miles is the costumed white stallion who has orange hair and eyes. He typically wears the Broncos orange jersey with the number 00 and white pants. Miles is the one entertaining the fans and getting them ready for the game. He celebrates the points and can be seen dancing around to great plays by the team. According to his backstory, Miles was born on January 31, 1999, but he started appearing as a mascot from 2001 onwards.

Off the field, Miles is a very friendly mascot who attends various places such as local schools to teach the children the importance of eating right and staying active. One of the more important places he visits on a monthly basis is hospitals such as St. Luke’s, UC Health Medical Centers, and Children’s Hospital of Colorado. His mischievous antics bring joy and smiles to patients and bring about a positive feeling amongst everyone he meets.

Miles averages over 320 events a year and can also be found at several other events such as The Denver Rescue Mission, The Food Bank of the Rockies, and more. Miles is one of the rare mascots that has traveled to countries in Europe such as Italy, Germany, Spain, and Portugal to perform for American troops at overseas bases.

Denver Broncos Mascot Thunder

The Broncos mascot Thunder is very unique as it is an actual horse. Thunder is the stage name given to this horse. From 1993 till now, three purebred Arabian horses have held this role. All of the horses were gray in color but their coats were turned completely white. All three horses have been owned by a woman named Sharon Magness-Blake while the horses have been ridden by another woman named Ann Judge from 1998.

At all home games for the Broncos, Thunder is the one to lead the team out on the field. He then makes a run from one end of the field to the other whenever the team scores a touchdown or even a field goal. To ensure the safety of all the people and Thunder as well, a team of 4 people run with him on the sidelines and then walked him back to his original position.

Although Thunder is present mostly at all the home games for the Denver Broncos, he has occasionally been transported out of the state for Super Bowls XXXII, XXXIII, XLVIII, and Super Bowl 50. As per the rider Ann Judge, the original Thunder who was later named as Thunder Sr. was bold and courageous, while Thunder II was a bit shy when he was new to mascot duties. However, he grew into the role slowly and then there was no looking back. As for Thunder III, he is described as being more laid back and has even been seen taking naps when not performing during the games.