Saturday, March 29, 2025, Sheraton Hotel, Madison, WI

Another excellent day in beautiful Madison, Wisconsin. I brought out all of my baseball and football binders along with publications. I finished setting up right around the opening bell at 9 a.m. I then snuck away for a quick bathroom break before the crowd came in. Shortly after returning to my tables, I was mobbed! Totally unexpected. Folks were lining up to buy stuff. Folks were lining up to sell me stuff. It was a crazy and hectic start to the show!

Beau introduced me to Chris (thanks Beau!!) who was selling his uncle's vintage sports card collection. Chris first showed me a box of raw vintage stars from the 1950s and 1960s. Great stuff in there but priced too high. I'll take smaller margins when purchasing graded cards but not on raw cards as the price is not as definitive on a raw card, so I need much larger margins before I will make a purchase.

Chris said he priced the cards through a Ludex app. I am familiar with Ludex but am unfamiliar with their app. You don't really ever hear Ludex and vintage cards in the same sentence so I was a little suspect of Chris's pricing.

Chris said he had commons as well and went to his car to retrieve them. Next up, a younger guy had a box of cards with some stacks of vintage. I had a tough time flipping through the box as I had to help customers purchasing cards. Then all sorts of people started to butt in on the deal. Not cool! When a deal is going down, folks need to step away so I can negotiate with the seller. 

I pulled out one stack from the seller's box and started to flip through it when some random guy asks if he can flip through the stack. I resp0nded with a firm "no!" and tried to explain that we were working on a deal. Butt out buddy!

Another guy asked if he could buy some of the cards after I purchase them. No, again. I have a process for pricing cards and I don't do it at the show shortly after a purchase. Actually, cards sit for a while in my card bunker before I get to pricing them. 

Anyway, I made an offer on the cards but I think the seller thought he had gold and he declined my offer. I thought my offer was fair and that maybe he would come back. I guess another dealer made a better offer because he did not come back. The cards were largely 1972 Topps baseball. I have a ton of them and just am not going to make a high offer on those cards.

It was kind of frustrating trying to deal with several sellers at once with so many customers at my table needing attention as well. I probably lost some sales because I was hyper focused on the sellers.

Chris came back with a duffel bag of cards along with two large boxes. Probably around 3,000 baseball and football common cards from 1954 through 1970. I looked through most of them to get an idea of condition. There was a range of condition, as usual when buying a collection. The bulk of the cards were 1956 through 1960 baseball. There was some oddball stuff in there like Fleer baseball from 1959 through 1961 and some 1960 Leaf baseball. I made an offer and Chris and his uncle accepted. Woot!

I did not have much cash with me. Thankfully, Chris accepted a PayPal payment. I talked briefly with Chris's uncle who told me that this was his childhood collection. He said he obtained the bulk of the cards as a kid in 1958 while living in Freeport, Illinois, when his neighbor threw out a box of cards. Chris's uncle said he retrieved the box from the neighbor's garbage can and kept them all these years. Cool story!  

So I was kind of dealing with Chris and the other guy with the '72s at the same time and also dealing with customers at my table. It was kind of a cluster%$#@. Once done with Chris and the '72 guy, another seller, who I met at this show last year and purchased a bunch of 1970's sets, had a stack of graded vintage stars. His pricing last year was reasonable. This time around he was way too high. He also had a 1972 set that he wanted to sell. Like I said before, I do not need any 1972s and would only be interested if they were really cheap. 

I did a quick eBay search and saw the two most recent sales of '72 sets were around $5K and $2,500. Having dealt with this guy before, I knew his set was not minty and warranting a $5K price tag. He was at $2,400. I was not confident I could sell the set at $2,400 and declined.

I then dealt with some customers before talking to the next seller in line. The next guy up (they literally lined up to sell me cards at 9 a.m.!) was someone I purchased some cards from recently. Maybe last month in Madison. Sometimes all these shows and all these people blend together and I am just lost in space and time. Anyway, he had a 1957 Topps Ernie Banks SGC 1.5 that I ended up purchasing. He also had a 1966 Topps Batman card in a PSA 6. I did not really know what to offer. I kept asking him to give me a price. He wanted an offer. I hate this little game. Everyone has a price in mind. Just tell me your price! I offered 15 bucks. I didn't think these cards sold for much. The seller rejected my offer and walked away. Looking up a random Batman PSA 6 now, one sold for around $60 recently. I probably should have looked it up at the show but there was so much going on at my tables! I just wanted to be done with all these sellers and start helping my paying customers after spending quite a bit of money with Chris.

What a crazy start to the show! A few more guys came by throughout the day to sell me cards but they all seemed to have 1980's and 1990's cards. No thank you!

Then my friend Jim came by and brought me a much-needed Diet Mountain Dew. Thanks Jim!! This was probably the first Sheraton show where I was unable to go downstairs to the faux Starbucks and get a cup of coffee. I am not a morning person and desperately need caffein in the a.m.

I stuffed the boxes of cards I purchased from Chris under my tables then sat down. I am not sure what time this was but it was my first opportunity to observe the room since the show opened. Man alive! It was mobbed!!!! Huge crowd!!! Folks could barely walk through the aisles because there were so many bodies.

I realized that PSA was at the front of the room which explained why the Seacrest boys were across from me when they are normally at the front of the room. Love these guys! Man, they were incredibly busy the whole show while I had some down time after my initial rush.

Speaking of PSA, so cool to see them set up at the Madison show. I have been setting up at Wisconsin shows, all over the state, for the past 25 years and can attest that PSA has never set up in Wisconsin before today. My view of the PSA booth was largely blocked by the hoards of people attending the show but was told that there was a long line of people submitting cards to PSA today. Woot!

Hopefully PSA realizes that Wisconsin is the best place in the world for sports cards and that they return to the show soon!!!

Anyway, I sold all sorts of stuff today, including some vintage programs, Sport Magazine, Sports Illustrated and some vintage baseball digests. I was surprised the publications did so well. I am going to have to reload and bring them out again soon!

Nick from the Bridgeview show purchased some autographs. Thanks Nick! Paul, one of my best regulars at this show, found his usual stack. My regular guys building their 1956 Topps baseball sets, pulled some cards as well. Though, one of my main regular guys was missing today. Hope he is okay! You see guys every month and on the rare occasion they don't show up, you start to worry. We're all family here.

Overall, sales were down from last month but my purchases far made up for it. I realized today that I enjoy purchasing cards much more than selling cards. Selling is just a means to an end. I am like a kid in a candy store when I purchase a collection. As things slowed up at my tables, I enjoyed going through all the cards I purchased from Chris. Fun stuff!

This was a really fun show. Great vibe in the room. Though several guys complained that the venue is too small for the show. Obviously, these people have never tried to put on a show. 

I can tell you from 10 years of experience that it is not easy to put on a card show. The hardest part is finding a venue that is reasonably priced and one where management does not take on an adversarial relationship.

I don't know if any larger venues are available in Madison... and if they are, what is the rental fee? I don't think dealers would be willing to pay much more than they are currently paying to set up at the Madison show. Then you have to wonder whether customers would be willing to go to a new venue that may be in another part of town.

I subscribe to the policy: "If it ain't broken, don't fix it." I am fine with the way things are at this show. I like it and set up every month. Crowds don't bother me. I have always enjoyed being in a big crowd. I like the energy. I like seeing so many people have a good time.

Yet, I hear the same thing about Oak Creek. Many folks have expressed their opinion that I should move the show to a larger venue. Well, I am doing one at a larger venue and my costs are through the roof. The amount of work I have to do has doubled. I much prefer the monthly show in Oak Creek to my MegaShow in Franklin -- which is why I am only going to do a couple MegaShows a year. Oak Creek is just fine. It ain't broke! Madison is just fine. It ain't broke!

I think instead of complaining, folks should just enjoy the show. The Madison show is an excellent show. Anyone remember what we had in Madison before Beau came around? While Darren is a super great guy, his shows paled in comparison to Beau's shows. Remember that tiny little room where dealers were on top of one another? I forget the name of the hotel but it was just down the road from the Sheraton. Terrible room for a show. It was more like a closet.

Anyway, I have digressed. I had a great day in Madison. Next Madison show is on April 26.

Up next is Oak Creek on Saturday, April 5, 2025. I am way overbooked!! I had a bunch of regular dealers miss the March show so I added all sorts of new guys from the wait list. Now I have all the regulars coming back and all the new guys want to set up again! Ugh! I am probably going to have to add another row of dealers in the Game Room like I did at the end of last year. We'll see how this plays out! It is a strange situation when I hope for dealers to cancel. Fun, fun, fun!

Tables are still available for the MegaShow in Franklin, WI, on April 19. Send me an email at [email protected] if you are interested in a table. This show should be a beast! We have a huge space!! I am going to make nice and wide aisles along with giving the dealers a ton of space behind their tables. So while I am expecting a big crowd, it should not feel crowded. 

A huge thank you to Beau for another great show in Madison. Also a huge thank you to everyone who bought and sold me cards. What a day!!

Below are a few more photos from my perch at the Madison show, including a photo of some of my purchases.

I pulled this last photo off the Madison Card Show Facebook Page. If you look hard enough you can see my bald head in the middle of the room as I accept the much-needed Mountain Dew from Jim. Cool photo! Great show!

Sunday, March 23, 2025, Civic Center, Orland Park, IL

Very festive day at the Orland Park Card Show with wonderful Easter decor and a visit from the Easter Bunny. I wanted to get a photo with the Easter Bunny but could not get away from my tables.

Excellent show once again. Nice crowd. 

The guy next to me has been selling his personal collection at the last several shows. He has baseball and football cards from 1969 through 1972 in two binders. Nice guy even though he is a Steelers fan. He told me he was originally a Bears fan but became disillusioned after years of futility. Can't blame him.

I am pretty sure he was selling his childhood collection. I don't think he looked at his cards until he decided to sell them. He placed them in the binders by team. He does not seem to understand that most folks collect vintage cards by year, not team -- though some do collect by team. He also had no idea of the value of his cards. He priced everything at a $1 a card whether it was a star or a common. Advanced collectors/dealers came through and cleaned him out of all of his stars which were priced way too cheap. I watched him sell multiple $20 cards for just a $1 each. He offered me the binders for 50-cents a card. I actually sell most of those cards for 25 cents a card, so I would need a much better deal. Though, I think he is having fun and does not really need the money as he told me stories of golfing in Mexico.

I brought out all of my binders and two display cases of graded cards this month. Eddie came by and purchased a pile of the graded cards. Thanks Eddie! I sold several other cards to random collectors including my 1970 Topps Nolan Ryan PSA 5.

Quite a few guys attacked the binders, as usual. Will pulled all of my 1977-78 Topps hockey. Thanks Will! I have one regular customer who completed his 1972 Topps baseball set with me a year or so ago. Today, he brought his teenage son who started on his own '72 set. Nice folks. See picture above. Actually there are a ton of nice folks in Orland who I have known for years.

Will and I were talking about the current dealers that were there when I first started setting up at this show 25 years ago. We think there are a good eight or nine guys left from that time period. So many guys have just disappeared or gone onto that great card show in the sky that we really miss like Big John who used to have the very first table when you walk in. There was our amazing pal Chuck, who would occasionally set up and sell 1974 Topps baseball and Post Cereal baseball. To this day, Chuck was one of the most knowledgeable card collectors I have ever known. Miss those guys terribly.

Back at today's show, I purchased a nice group of 1971 Topps football from Jeff. Thanks Jeff! Jim sold me some 1967 Topps baseball stars. Thanks Jim. I pulled my usual stack of stuff from Walt. Nice haul, once again.

Love the Orland show which has been my home away from home for a very long time. Next one is slated for April 27.

Up next for me is Madison on Saturday, March 29, at the Sheraton Hotel on John Nolan Drive. I am going to bring out all of my binders and my publications. I should have 1961 Fleer football reloaded and ready to go.

After Madison, it is time once again for Oak Creek on April 5. My waiting list is now at 173 dealers. I am amazed that folks continue to ask to be added to the waiting list where the wait is now about a year.

So to clear off my waiting list for a day, I created the Wisconsin MegaShow set for April 19 at the Milwaukee County Sports Complex. I have currently sold 300 tables and have a 100 more to go. I started working on the layout today and see that I could fit as many as 500 tables in the space. We'll see how many we end with. Should be fun!!

Come on out to Madison on Saturday!!!

Saturday, March 22, 2025, RV Hall of Fame, Elkhart, IN

Had the date open. Saw this show posted online. Booked it without realizing Elkhart is more than two hours away from home. Though, I have driven by the RV Hall of Fame a million times, so I was interested in setting up at this show.

On the morning of, I woke up at 4 a.m. It took me a while to gather myself (I'm not a morning person), bathe, load the car and hit the road. It was still pitch black outside when I started out for Elkart at 5 a.m. Pretty easy drive. Not much traffic at that hour.

I thought it was kind of cool when I received a video via text from the promoter on Friday night. In the video he showed the room and gave some instructions to dealers for arrival.

I was a little worried I would be late because of the time change. I arrived around 8:15 a.m. Eastern Time. The room was only half full of dealers. I followed the instructions from the video and parked on the north end and loaded into the venue. I was pleasantly surprised to find my tables located next to old friend John Dobiecki. 

I brought out all of my baseball and football binders. I reloaded 1980 Topps baseball before the show. The promoter gave John and I an extra table to split between us. Neither of us brought enough extra stuff to fill our extra space. I was able to get out three extra football binders.

Set up was easy and I had time to spare before the show opened so I hit the concession stand for some diet Cokes and a plate of pulled pork for breakfast. Looking around the room, I did not see too many people I knew setting up. Mitch L. was nearby. Dennis who regularly sets up with Tommy Larsen was there. Bob L. was set up way in the back of the room. That was about it for people I knew. My assumption is that most of these dealers set up at the monthly South Bend and Fort Wayne shows. I heard a lot of people talk about the recent Shipshewana show. I have been hearing good things about Shipshewana for years. I finally put my name on their waiting list and hope to set up there one of these days.

The dealer across from me had four tables of Funko Pops. I was interested to see how he would do since I have a load of them at home as my son used to collect them but lost interest long ago. The dealer seemed pretty busy the whole show. He had a huge inventory and would fill the holes on his table after every purchase with more Funko Pops.

Nice crowd. The aisle in front of me was a little tight and there was a lot of congestion. Not a very good use of the space. The promoters could have made the aisles wider. In the video from Friday, the promoter advised customers to leave strollers at home -- now I know why.

Sales started out slow. I did not have my first sale until after 10 a.m. Seemed like John was doing much better with his blaster boxes. He also kept scouring the room and purchased a ton more blaster boxes during the show. I was glad I could watch his table while he ventured out and appreciated that he watched my table while I made repeated trips to the concession stand, as I often do.

I think I saw five or six tables of vintage. In general, the prices were too high for me. Though, one dealer had a 1963 Topps Pete Rose rookie in an SGC 4 that I did contemplate purchasing. I haven't had a Rose rookie in a couple of years. 

After getting a few sales here and there, some set builders finally arrived. One customer just about cleared out my 1957 Topps baseball binder, which made my day. Another set builder stopped by a few times and pulled some nice piles each visit. Then a father and son team pulled a ton of cards late in the day and I ended up having a real nice show. Woot!

On the buying front, I purchased a 1969-70 Topps Ruler Jerry West and a Jerry Lucas. The rulers aren't in the greatest shape but the price was right. I love these things and have not had any in years, so I was pretty happy with the purchase.

A few other guys offered me stuff priced too high. Then an older husband and wife came by. The husband said he had complete sets from the 1950s up to the 2010s. When I tried to tell him I would only be interested in the older stuff, he cut me off and angrily said he is selling it all and no one can cherry pick. I replied that I was not interested.

One thing that puzzles me during every show is that people will try to sell me modern cards when I have nothing but vintage cards on my tables. Can't they see that I only carry vintage? What would I do with modern cards? I don't have buyers for modern cards. I don't have any interest in modern cards. I don't want modern cards.

Anyway, on Sunday, I saw Dennis in Orland and he told me a bunch of 1933 Goudeys walked into the RV Hall of Fame show and one of the vintage dealers purchased them all. Damn! I wish they made it to me!!! Dennis said there were Ruths and Gehrigs in the group -- this is the stuff I want! I could care less about Paul Skenes.

Overall, I thought this was an excellent show. I had a real nice time hanging out with John all day. The promoters are planning another show at the RV Hall of Fame in November which is a tough month for me, hope I can make it back!

This was another double-bill weekend with Orland on Sunday. Orland blog coming soon.

Next up for me is Madison on Saturday, March 29, 2025. This should be an especially strong Madison show with PSA set up and accepting submissions. I am still working on my new 1969 Topps binder but won't have it done by Saturday. I'm hoping to have 1961 Fleer football reloaded by Saturday. I am also leaning towards bringing out some publications to Madison. I have a huge inventory of vintage Sport and Sports Illustrated magazines and have been packaging and pricing quite a few of them lately. I also have a nice box of vintage Baseball Digests ready to go.

Next Oak Creek show is coming up fast on April 5. As usual, I am overbooked and keep adding more folks to my crazy-long waiting list. It is now about a year wait to get space at the Oak Creek show.

I still have some dealer space available for my Wisconsin MegaShow slated for April 19, 2025, at the Milwaukee County Sports Complex, 6000 Ryan Road, Franklin, WI. Eight-foot tables cost $50 each and need to be prepaid via PayPal to [email protected].

​Fun stuff ahead! Hope to see you in Madison on Saturday!!!

Friday - Sunday, March 14 - 16, 2025, Chicago Sports Spectacular, Donald Stephens Center, Rosemont, IL

I was concerned about loading into the show on Thursday night because the last couple of years the folks that operate this show shrunk the dealer load-in area creating a dangerous situation. I had a little debate with myself, as I often do, as to whether I should brave the load-in area or just park across the street in the parking garage and load in from there.

I realized loading in from the parking garage would be a huge hike and very draining for my sickly body, so I opted for the regular load-in area and was pleasantly surprised. There was a group of guys that met me at the garage door and took my info, then a couple of guys inside directed me to a spot. This was my easiest and safest load in at this show in years. Nice to see they fixed a serious problem.

I arrived around 5 p.m. and was greeted by my neighbors Paul and Greg. Love those guys! I think I finally found a permanent home in this place after setting up all over the room during the past 30 years.

I could not remember exactly how many display cases I brought out last time. I was able to place out 13 display cases. I brought one extra which I took home after set up Thursday night. 

Normally, you gotta move your car right away after you unload but it did not seem like many more dealers arrived after I did, so I left my car in the load-in area. The guys had my phone number and could call if they needed me to move my car. 

I moved the 8-foot table provided by the venue back about 12 feet then lined up my side against Greg's booth with two six footers I brought along. I had one little side table I placed against Paul's booth. This was the same layout I used in November. I spent about an hour cleaning the glass on all of my cases. I only clean the glass at the big shows.

Easy ride home around 7 p.m. Of course I could not sleep well. I always have a tough time sleeping the night before a show. I don't know why! I had hoped to get to the show Friday morning around 11 a.m. but did not make it until noon. I brought my showcase cards with me and commenced loading the cases. The VIPs were allowed in around 1 p.m. I think I just finished up in time.

Kind of slow early on. I went and got a hot dog at the concession stand to the horror of Paul. I needed some sustenance and a diet Coke.

Man, it was slow goin' for quite a while. I sat around what seemed like hours before I had a sale. I think my pal Tony was my first sale. He purchased some '73s for his set. Thanks Tony! Sales started to trickle in.

Mike S. arrived and told me the tacos at the taco stand were pretty good. I had Mike watch my booth while I grabbed some tacos. Thanks Mike!

Sales trickled in until closing time at 8:30 p.m. Sales were much slower than on Friday at the November show. I was concerned. Much smaller Friday crowd than November but I do remember the show being absolutely dead on Friday for the March show last year. Not sure why so few people seem to come out on Friday during the March show. This is the most inconsistent of all the shows I do.

I did see my Wisconsin buddies Scott, Jim, Al and Pittsburgh Jim. Always great hanging out with those guys.

I stopped off to get some groceries and gas at Woodman's on the way home. Ate some food and passed out until around 4:30 a.m. when I just woke up and was wide awake. I tried to watch some TV to fall asleep but no luck. I was up. It was going to be a long day with lack of sleep once again!

One of the nice things about this show is that the promoters provide coffee and doughnuts for all the dealers. Trouble was, they moved the entrance into the coffee/doughnut area. I could not find it!

I purchased some diet Mountain Due at Woodman's Friday night along with some bread and sandwich meat, so I was ready to go on the drinks and food front. Paul thought I was nuts for drinking Mountain Due -- I love the stuff! 

Like the November show, there was as big crowd on Saturday. The building filled up fast. I was concerned after having slow sales on Friday and remembering slow sales on Saturday in November. Once again, I was concerned for nothing. I ended up having a real nice day! Scott S. purchased a bunch of my hockey. Thanks Scott! I sold some of my graded cards after not selling any on Friday. I sold a raw T206.

My old friend Jason showed up and purchased a bunch of cards including my 1960 Willie McCovey rookie. Thanks Jason! A new customer purchased a nice pile of 1969 Topps baseball along with my 1971 Topps Willie Mays. I sold a 1972 and 1974 Hank Aaron. One of my Woodstock customers purchased some 1953 Topps. Sales added up and I had a satisfying day.

I also purchased a bunch of stuff including some '75 minis, a hodge podge of 1960's cards including a 1968 Topps Bob Gibson, some '74 commons and a pile of 1965 Topps high numbers. Gizmo stopped by my booth and sold me a 1963 Topps Al Lopez PSA 7. Thanks Giz! Nice haul!

Even though I was tired, Saturday was a real nice day. It was great to see Jimmy C., Derek and host of other guys from the Orland show.

Though, I did have some down time which I used for people watching. My mind wandered to hair as it often does at these larger shows -- maybe it is because I don't have any which causes me to take notice of those that do. Well, actually I was noticing the guys that have some hair, not a lot. There were a few guys with the 1970's comb over, made popular again by our current President. I have never understood the comb-over. Why? It is not a good look and those guys are better off doing what I do, shave it off.

I shave my head a couple of times each week. It is soooo comfortable. I love it. I really don't miss having hair.

Then I was stuck staring at the older dealer across from me with the toupee. I have never understood toupees which may be the worst look of all time.

I probably hate the comb-over and the toupee because I experienced them both growing up. When I was little, in the 1970s, my dad did the comb-over. Never looked good. Then he moved onto the toupee, Burt Reynolds' style. In the 1980s, my dad and all of his buddies had that stupid Burt Reynolds toupee. One of my uncles wore that thing as well. I got a laugh once when I walking to the train after work on a windy day in Downtown Chicago. I did not see him at first, but my uncle came up from behind and started to explain his need to hold his toupee down on his head during windy days in Chicago. Apparently, his Burt Reynolds toupee blew off his head one day and he had race around commuters to recover that thing, a little damaged, but fit back on his bald globe.

Okay, now for the worst look of all time -- the man bun. OMG! It is so horrible. How do guys think it is okay to look that way? I watched this one tubby guy with the man bun compliment his look with big black glasses and a bad porn star mustache. WTF? Then there are the older guys who have the gray-haired man bun. One such guy complimented my T-shirt and said his wife got him the same one for Christmas. As he was talking to me, all I could think about was how could his wife allow him to leave the house with a stupid gray-haired man bun? Cut that shit off! It looks sooo stupid!!

Sorry, I have regressed. Back to the task at hand, buying and selling cards. I had a nice day Saturday. I probably should not be allowed to be alone with my thoughts.

Once again, I went home, ate dinner and passed out. Finally, I was able to sleep through the night. I think I could have slept all day Sunday but forced myself out of bed, bathed, grabbed my diet Mountain Due and a sandwich and made it to the show around 9 a.m. where I finally found the doughnuts and coffee. Woot!

As a general rule, Sunday at the bigger shows like the Sports Spectacular and the National are usually a huge waste of time. I almost took home most of my booth on Saturday night but I did not have the strength to deal with it. Thankfully, I was fully set up Sunday because I had my best day of the weekend! Woot!

Nice crowd early on and I sold all sorts of stuff. I sold my 1955 Topps All-American Jim Thorpe to get the day going. I sold a nice looking 1968 Topps Ernie Banks. I sold a 1975 Topps Robin Yount rookie. 

Scott S. returned and pulled out a huge pile of football cards. Thanks Scott! A random guy purchased all of my 1952-53 Parkhurst hockey. Nick, who was set up a couple booths away, purchased my 1959 Topps Bob Gibson rookie. Thanks Nick! I sold a bunch of other stuff that I don't even remember. All I know is that I went home with the most money on Sunday. Woot!

Overall, a much better show than November. I more than doubled my November sales. One thing that helped me was I did not bring out any of my Exhibit cards. I had a whole case filled with Exhibits in November and did not sell one. In place of the Exhibits, I had a near case of vintage hockey and sold a ton of it! Woot!

The folks from the show did a nice job directing traffic during load-out which was easy peasy. I was home by 6 p.m. Another Sports Spectacular in the books. I am probably going to give their Detroit show a try at the end of May. I need to get my contract in. I'll definitely be back for the November show.

A huge thank you to everyone who bought and sold me cards this weekend. I also appreciate all the people that stopped by to say hello and chat. I had a really nice weekend.

Up next is a new show at the RV Hall of Fame in Elkhart, IN, on Saturday, March 22. Then I'm at the mighty Orland show on Sunday, March 23.

Next Oak Creek show is April 5. I am expecting another huge crowd. One of the things I like about the Sports Spectacular is that it is a great opportunity to promote my shows. I had a lot of interest in the MegaShow slated for April 19 in Franklin, WI. More fun ahead... but no man buns, please!!!

Sunday, March 9, 2025, Porter County Fairgrounds, Valparaiso, IN

I have been trying to get back to one of Haley and Ben's shows for more than a year but they just don't fit in my schedule. I did one of their South Bend shows more than a year ago and had a great show, so I was thrilled I could finally hit one of their shows again!

I drove up from St. Louis, after setting up at Machinist Hall, and spent the night in New Buffalo, MI, about 40 minutes from Valpo. I had some trouble Sunday morning because I always get confused when I set up in Indiana because part of the state is Central Time and part of the state is Eastern Time. To be safe, I guessed Valpo was Eastern Time. On top of it, Saturday night was daylight saving's time so I lost an hour... then lost another hour because Valpo is Central time. I arrived at the show before sun up!

I peeked into the venue and saw Ben and Haley setting up tables and chairs and maybe one or two vendors setting up. I had already hit McDonald's on my way and decided to get some gas, coffee and sandwich.

I arrived back at the venue around 7:15 a.m., talked with Haley and Ben and loaded in. I observed a huge industrial building billowing smoke behind the venue. Anybody know what that thing is? It kinda looked like a power plant.

I was soon greeted by my pal Dave Frazier, always a site for sore eyes. It was great to hang out with Dave all day. As the morning went on, more and more people that I knew arrived at the show. Bob Lucas was set up behind me. Larry, picturred above, was set up next to me. Mike Slinkman and Orland Eddie were there. Bob and Dale, who I met at the last Schererville show, were there. Bob purchased quite a few cards. Thanks Bob! Lowball Lonnie and a couple of other guys I met at the Lake Stations shows were there. Tony and his lovely wife were there. Man, I sure did feel at home in Valpo, even though it was my first time setting up in this town.

Back on Friday, I figured I would do well in St. Louis and not very well in Valpo. I never learn. Rule Number 24 -- never have any expectations for a card show. Turned out St. Louis was slow and Valpo was great!!

A huge thank you to everyone who purchased cards from me in Valpo!! Special thanks to Dave for sending over the Orioles collector who purchased a ton of cards. Woot!

I was impressed with the number of vintage dealers in the room. Quite a few guys with excellent vintage inventories were set up. One dealer made my day. He purchased a ton of stuff! Thank you!!

On the buying front, I purchased stack of low grade early 1960's commons from Dave. Thank you!

Only downer on the day was that an older guy stole some cards out of my $1 box. He was in the box for a good 40 minutes and did not purchase any cards. At one point, he dropped a stack of cards from my box onto the floor. He never put the cards pack in the box. I was busy, so I could not keep an eye on him and he must have stuck the cards in his folder and walked away. Dave said he stole some cards from him as well. I do remember what he looked like and will keep an eye out for him at future show. I probably lost $10 or $20 worth of cards.

After the show, I went back to my folks' place in New Buffalo because I had to finish watering their plants while they winter in Florida. I ended up falling asleep and did not go home until Monday.

I had a really enjoyable weekend. I spent the next week pricing cards for the Chicago Sports Spectacular which ran from March 14 through 16. Sports Spectacular blogs coming soon. 

Next up is another Indiana show in Elkhart on Saturday, March 22, 2025, at the RV Hall of Fame. Then on Sunday, March 23, is the mighty Orland show. Busy, busy, busy.

Next Oak Creek show is April 5. Also, tables are filling up fast for the MegaShow slated for April 19. I am up to 300 tables sold. I should sell out soon. I may end up adding more than 400 tables. Woot!

​See you soon!

Saturday, March 8, 2025, Machinists Hall, St. Louis, MO

After a long hiatus from this show, I returned this past November and had an excellent show. I was busy all day long, so I was looking forward to the March 8th show and expected another solid day.

I never seem to learn. Rule Number 1, never have any expectations! Not sure why I did so lousy this past Saturday when there was as virtual feeding frenzy at my tables in November.

Oh, well, you just never know how a card show will go. All you can do is hope for the best.

With not much doing at my tables, I had time to walk the show and was impressed with the number of vintage dealers. Man, there were more 1959 Topps Bob Gibson rookies than I have ever seen anywhere else. A lot of guys had three or four of them in their case. I do love seeing all the vintage.

The dealer next to me, pictured above, had a case filled with vintage hockey slabs. It was cool! He seemed to know a lot of people at the show and had a lot of action, both buying and selling. Though, he did not sell any of his hockey. He said he rarely sells any of his hockey. I was surprised because, back in the day, I use to sell a ton of hockey in St. Louis. I hardly sold any at the November show and did not bother to bring any out this past Saturday.

I had a little different set up this time around. I brought out all of my baseball and thought my recently reloaded 1973s would do well. I think I had one guy go through there and pull out a few cards. In November, I put out all of my football binders and did really well with them. This time around, I left the football at home because everything I reloaded since November has been wiped out. I'm selling a ton of football cards these days. So, instead of the football, I put out two display cases and brought my $1 box and another discount box. I was pleased with the sales out of the display cases and the discount boxes but it did not generate the same amount of sales as the football binders.

While this show was disappointing, I am not discouraged. I really like this show. Promoter Ron Estes is a super nice guy and a great vintage dealer as well. The show is well attended and everyone is pleasant. My only complaints are that the lighting is terrible and there is no food.

Surprisingly, my hotel, a La Quinta Inn, had a decent breakfast and I swiped a danish and an orange and ate them at the show.

On the buying front, I picked up a couple of George Brace signed photo/postcards for my collection. One dealer had a vintage binder of Cardinals autographs and one of Browns autographs. There was cool stuff in there. I could have gone crazy. I'll hit him up again the next time.

Afterwards, I did not want to leave St. Louis because the weather was amazing -- 64 degrees and sunny. I stopped off at Hardees on the drive home. I have not eaten at a Hardees in years and now I know why. The burgers taste funky. The meat is a bit gamey. I had a few bites and threw the thing away. I eventually stopped at a Denny's and had a much better meal.

This was a double-bill weekend with Valparaiso on Sunday. I drove up to New Buffalo, Michigan, and spent the night at my folks' place. It is so peaceful and quiet there. I love it. There are also a few casinos around there but I was too tired after the drive to partake.

Anyway, not sure when I'll make it back to St. Louis but I will be back eventually.

Up next is the Chicago Sports Spectacular this weekend, March 14 through 16. I will once again be in Booth #45 right next to the guy that has rows of jerseys and T-shirts for sale. Hope to see you this weekend!

Saturday, March 1, 2025, Salvation Army Community Center, Oak Creek, WI

The Oak Creek show has become a huge behemoth with 1,525 through the door Saturday along with 192 dealer tables. As I write this blog on Sunday, I am tired!

It is a huge effort to pull this thing off each month and I am always wiped out afterwards. No rest for the weary, time to work on the April show!

Back on Saturday, we had 1,000 through the door by 10 a.m. I really recommend that folks start to arrive after 11 a.m. Parking will be tight. You just gotta deal with it. You will have to park across the street in the Target parking lot and walk to the venue. There will also be parts of the building that will be tight -- sorry, that is just the way it is. Come later in the day if you don't like crowds.

Most every dealer in the building was very pleased with the crowds and their sales. All the customers I talked to seemed very happy with the show. 

We had to toss out some teenagers who were identified as thieves by one of our dealers. As far as we know, they did not steal anything in Oak Creek but were caught stealing at the Rockford show last week. Initially, we kicked two out but could not find a third teen in the group. One of my good customers, a retired police officer, spotted them sneaking back into the building through a back door. This time we found the third teen and kicked them all out with a warning that they will be arrested for trespassing if they return. These teens are no longer welcome at the Oak Creek show and I will have them arrested if I ever see them in the building again.

One dealer reported that he had a $2K card stolen at the February show. He had the card out on his table. I am amazed that some dealers will not place expensive cards in locked display cases. The reality of the situation is that thieves, like the teens we kicked out, are at every show. Dealers must take some basic precautions like locking expensive cards in a locked display case. There are many different types of display cases available these days. You can find their websites easily with a Google search. You can also buy them on eBay or Amazon. There are always a few companies set up at the Sports Spectacular selling display cases. They are easy to obtain. Dealers! Please obtain a locking display case and protect your cards!!!

While we're on the subject of dealers, I had a couple issues with dealers this month, as usual. One dealer got angry at me after he told me he would miss the April show and I responded that I can't guarantee his spot for May. I can't guarantee space to anyone anymore as this show has become a juggernaut with 163 dealers on my waiting list. I am running the MegaShow on April 19 at the Milwaukee County Sports Complex in Franklin to give the waiting list dealers a chance to set up. In the meantime, any dealer that skips Oak Creek, is not guaranteed a spot at the next show.

Having said that, I will do my best to get them a spot but space only opens up when registered dealers cancel. If I have to hold them out of a show, I will put them to the top of the waiting list. I have had to hold a few dealers back recently but was able to get them back in at a different spot the next month. They can't expect to return to their old spot. Which brings me to the knucklehead dealer on Saturday who refused to move to a new spot after missing February and set up in his old location which was designated for someone else. I told that dealer that if he does that again I am kicking him out of the show. Every dealer location in the building has a name tag and each dealer must set up in the spot where their name tag is located. Nothing irritates me more when a dealer switches name tags. What makes them think that is okay?

Obviously, I was a little aggravated at the show Saturday. It sucks that I have to deal with idiots when all I want to do is sit behind my tables and buy and sell cards.

Actually, things were great over by my tables located on the stage in the Chapel today, along with dealers Tom Kummer and Omar Torrez. The stage in the Chapel is the last place I have room to add any dealers. 

I brought out six display cases and kept the binders at home because I was unable to load any prior to the show. I did well with the display cases and sold a lot of cards. The best part of the day, though, was my regular buying frenzy at my tables. I bought a ton of stuff! I picked up baseball and football team cards from the early 1960s. A nice stack of cards from the 1950s that included a 1958 Topps Willie Mays All Star. I purchased a box of 1967 Topps baseball. A near set of 1980 Topps football. A stack of slabbed T206s. A 1960 Chicago White Sox program and to top it off, a 1964 phantom Chicago White Sox World Series ticket. Cool stuff! I buy such great stuff in Oak Creek every month!! Love it!!

Making this show a success is a real team effort. A huge thank you to all my dealers of which 99 percent are awesome, one percent, not so much. The huge crowds. Thank you for attending!! Mark at the Salvation Army. Love that guy! Vanessa, the Salvation Army volunteer who works the front door. Ken, who makes the amazing Sloppy Joe for the concession stand along with all the other volunteers in the concession stand. Thanks guys! My set-up crew George and Kristy. Along with my bride of 27 years -- Lisa, who braves the wild card show frontier to collect table fee. Thank you everybody!!

We're back at it on April 5. The large stream of messages started yesterday. Give me some time to rest. I will respond eventually. Now for some sleep!!!

A couple of quick notes -- thank you Jeremy for the tales of bad breadth and butt cracks. Someone left a large tray of salad on the stage in the Chapel. It is still there if you want to go pick it up.

Now for some photos from the show that Lisa and I took during the event:

A young whippersnapper pulled this card out of one of the free packs I gave away.

I forgot who showed me this, but I remember they said they purchased it at the show for $20 and were very pleased.

Thanks again everybody! Next up for me is Machinist Hall in St. Louis on March 8 and Valparaiso on March 9.