2021 National Recap

Another National Sports Collectors Convention is in the books, and while it got off to a rocky start (sort of), it was a really great National.  The card collecting hobby is booming, for better or worse, and that caused the crowds and prices to soar to ridiculous levels, in my opinion.  Still, by the end of the show, I had come away with some really great stuff, and actually brought a little bit of money home with me.

The trip started great; I was flagged down as I was getting onto the plane in Greenville by none other than Down East Wood Ducks catcher, Cody Freeman.  He recognized me, and chose to change his seat so he could sit with me on the flight from Greenville to Charlotte.  Antonio Cabello was also on the flight, which was really cool.  I enjoyed sitting with Cody and chatting with him for a bit.

I also ran into this guy who was signing some baseballs for someone at the end of one of the days at the show (I think it was Thursday).  I spoke with Pete Rose for a bit about when we met him at the Hall of Fame, and thanked him for being so nice to my son, Chris.

I also met Ari Lehman, the actor who played Jason (the first actor to play Jason) in Friday the 13th.  He was really nice, and I talked with him for about 15 to 20 minutes while he signed autographs.  He was one of two non-sports signers at the show (the other was Scott Schwartz from A Christmas Story).  There was also a HorrorCon happening the same weekend as the show, and I was able to attend that Friday evening and get a few autographs there, as well.  More on that in a later post.

I had several paid vouchers for signers, and met all of the free baseball players.  I walked through the Felix Hernandez line with my friend, Michael, and met King Felix.  The biggest paid signer I had was David Ortiz, but he had a death in the family, and couldn't attend.  Tristar refunded me my money, which will be put toward the hotel costs that I have left over.

I paid to meet Ric Flair, since I had the dual card of him and Arn Anderson that I could finish up.  Flair was super cool, as always and maybe was the best dressed of all the signers there.

While I was in line to meet Flair, I got this nice shot of the legend, Hulk Hogan, who always draws a crowd at the National.  I didn't pay to meet him this time, but it was nice getting close to him, still.

In all, I added 7 Hall of Famers to my collection.  I'll break those down in separate posts.  I also added, I think, 10 signed cards to my 1987 Topps set, including finishing a team leaders card.  I also got two antique baseballs (and got two more, which were part of the Hall of Fame autographs I referenced earlier).  Several cards were knocked off of my 1972 set, and one card was crossed off of my 1955 Bowman set.

I'll break a lot of this down in subsequent posts, but as can be seen in the photo above, I left there with a decent haul.

My biggest complaints regarding the National were that it was way too crowded, and there was a lot of redundancy.  You could tell who the "noobs" were; and most of them spent their allowance/budget within the first two days, leaving Saturday and Sunday a lot less crowded than in the past.

The redundancy was evident in that maybe 40% of the tables were the exact same stuff: a ton of graded [stuff] that I wouldn't buy, nor could afford; Yankees stuff and/or the usual suspects of "big names".  Of course, the big names are Ohtani, Ronald Acuna, Juan Soto and Wander Franco.  After the first two rows of tables, Andrew and I looked at each other and said that we had seen enough Acuna cards to last us a lifetime.  I can also complain that it was really hard to find dime boxes (actual dime boxes, not just boxes of 80s-90s junk disguised as dime boxes) and I couldn't find many folks who had Bowman parallels for graphing that I could look through.  Oh, and I really wanted to find some Perfect Game lots, Leaf Valiant or Elite Extra Edition cards of Cody Freeman, but found none, just big name guys like... Acuna, Soto and Wander.

In all, though, I had a great time in Chicago this year.  I spent a lot of time with my good friend, Andrew, and also my buddy Nate.  I spent time with Nate's friend, Kyle, as well, and also Michael.  I got to see my awesome friend, Max, for a short bit, too, but not nearly as much as I would have liked to.  I would say that this was a very successful National, even though the first few days were over-crowded.  I look forward to next year, in Atlantic City, which, if I'm able, I'll be there.

2015 National Autograph Signing - Hulk Hogan

A late addition to the autograph lineup, I was so excited that Hulk Hogan had been added.  My son, Chris, is a huge wrestling fan, as I was at that age.  Chris was promised $100 if he passed his EOGs (end of grade testing), so when I saw that Hogan was added to the signing list, I thought Chris may want to upgrade.  I called him; well I called my mom, since Chris was staying there for a week this summer, and I asked Chris if he wanted to get to meet Hogan.  There was complete silence on the phone.  I asked him again and he said, "Yeah, of course I want to.  I'm so excited I might die."  So, I bought a voucher for Chris, and one for myself.  I also bought a photo op for Chris, just to be sure my nervousness didn't result in a crappy, shaky photo.

I ordered a few 8 x 10s to get signed, and the original ones were damaged in the mail.  Instead of risking them not getting here in time, I decided not to fight the company I ordered them from, and just re-sent my order.  I'm glad I did, because the second batch came in without any damage, and I was all set to go.

In the days leading up to the National, Hogan met some controversy in the mews based on some comments he made a few years back.  I'm not going to get into that here on my blog, but the comments were very unfortunate, and I'm certain Hogan now regrets them.  We all have made mistakes in our lives, and as the great Buck Showalter says "We all hope that our lives aren't judged by our worst mistakes."

In addition to the recent controversy, on Friday, Hogan lost one of his best friends when former wrestler and fellow WWE Hall of Famer, Rowdy Roddy Piper passed away unexpectedly, due to a heart attack.  Ric Flair, who was also scheduled to be at the National on Saturday canceled his appearance.  I spent the few days leading up to the National fully expecting Hogan to do the same.

Not only did Hogan live up to his commitment to all of us who bought autograph vouchers, he also was very courteous and gracious to all of us who showed him support on Saturday.  The first thing he said when he stepped out from behind the curtain for the photo ops was thanks you to all of us for our support, and that he loved us all.  How many times have we gone to autograph signing, only to have the celebrity or athlete just toss our items back to us with nothing more than a grunt.  Some don't even say thank you.

I spoke to Hogan, after filming Chris getting his auto, and told him that I was a huge fan of his growing up.  My brothers and I all looked up to him; we practiced the "Immortal Legdrop" on each other on our trampoline.  We watched WWF/WWE every chance we got.  He said thank you.  I then told him that I had been thinking about him during this rough time in his life, and that I still looked up to him and loved him.  He responded by looking up at me, looking me in the eyes and said "Thank you, Brother.  I love you, too.  I really appreciate your support."  Then, he shook my hand and signed my photo - "To William, my brother.  Hulk Hogan."

As we were walking past him, he grabbed Chris by the arm and said "Hey big man, do you know what your most important job is?"  Chris said, "What?"  Hogan then looked at me and said "Take care of this guy.  That's your job."  I teared up (I ended up letting a few tears loose as we walked back to meet up with Max and Andrew).  Here is a guy that I saw on TV so much during my childhood.  Most of those guys have died young, but Hogan is still around.  He is still honoring his commitments to the fans that made him so popular.  Yes he has been in the news for all of the wrong reasons lately, but I am a firm believer that we shouldn't be judged by our mistakes.  We should be judged by our actions.  This man took the time out of his life and schedule and allowed a father and son to share a memory.  Something my son will remember for the rest of his life, as will I.  I have lost respect for many a celebrity after meeting them in person, but Hulk Hogan gained so much more that I ever could have imagined.

The photos are already framed, and are about to be put on the wall, once I complete this blog post.  Chris is still in disbelief that he met Hogan.  I am, too.

So, I close this entry with the video that I shot of Hogan signing for Chris.  I hope that people learn to forgive him for the things he said.  I also hope that if by chance Hogan ever were to read this, that he knows that he really impacted my son and I during those brief minutes at the show.  Thanks, Hulk.

Yes, we are going!

In just a couple weeks, we will be boarding a plane to Chicago in order to attend the National Sports Collectors Convention.  I bought myself a VIP pass, but I probably will miss the sneak peek on Wednesday, since we land a bit late.  Oh well.

Going to the National was my very good friend, Andrew's idea.  After we met up and hung out last year, he and his family were looking for a reason for all of us to get together again, since we all hit it off so well.  So, the plan is for me to hang with Andrew most of, if not the whole, time while we are there.  I went to the National when it was in Baltimore in 2012 and had a blast.

I purchased several autograph vouchers for this year, the one I may be most excited about is someone I already met before, Brooks Robinson.  Brooks was ill when the National was in Baltimore, so I didn't get a chance to have him sign this photo of us together.  This was shot back in 2009 when my brother, Andy, and I attended the "Evening With Brooks" event in Baltimore.  I had an 8x10 printed of this photo, and want to have Brooks sign it.

I plan on adding at least one new Hall of Fame signed baseball to my collection when we meet Lou Brock.  I have been meaning to get his auto for a while, now, but haven't jumped on one.  Brock was one of the few on the docket that I could afford, that I didn't yet have.  Andrew and I will both be meeting Brooks and Brock.  I also have a ticket for my son to meet Brooks.

I thought I was done buying autograph vouchers until a couple days ago when I saw that Hulk Hogan was a late addition to the lineup.  Actually, he and Ric Flair will both be there, but I have already met Flair twice.  I was really excited to tell Chris, my son, that he would have a chance to meet Hogan.  Hogan was an icon of my childhood, and it will be so cool to meet him and get his autograph.  I also paid for a photo op for Chris, so he can get his picture taken with Hogan.  It cost quite a bit of money, but I think the memory I'm making for him will be worth far more than anything else I could buy with it.

Finally, I have built up a nice budget for the show, and I fully intend to use it on some good stuff.  Hopefully a few signed baseballs, maybe a few vintage cards, but my main goals as far as cards go are really only two: complete the 1959 Topps set, and don't leave the show without the 1992 Donruss Elite Cal Ripken autograph.  Those two goals are easily attainable, and I believe I can accomplish them.

Most of all, I plan on meeting up with a few friends from the blogs and Instagram.  I know I will be able to finally meet my good friend, Max, in person.  We also plan on hanging out with a few others like Caleb, Frankie and many more.

I'm really excited.  I'm counting the days, and have already started gathering up some stuff that I will be bringing along.