Card of the Day: LeBron James 2003-04 Topps Pristine #101

Card of the Day: James Hardy 2008 Topps #367

Harrisburg Sports Card Show – February 18, 2017

It has been a long time since I’ve attended a classic shopping mall sports card show.  There has been a steady stream of them around, but none really worth going to.  On the Thursday night news during the sports segment, I overheard them state that there would be a show at the Harrisburg Mall February 17-19.  In addition to that, they also mentioned some Pittsburgh Steelers were scheduled to sign autographs.  This definitely sounded like a show worth checking out.

The Harrisburg Sports Card Show is put on by show promoter Carl Hisiro.  Autograph guests for the weekend included three Steelers – Jesse James, Stephon Tuitt, and Sean Davis.  Former Eagles wide receiver Vince Papale was also on the list to sign.  I decided to take my black/gold Penn State football and get Jesse James to autograph it.  I think it turned out really well.  By the looks of it, I bet they sold at least (200) tickets just for Jesse James.  That number might be low.  It makes perfect sense for a lot of collectors to want him given that he is a Steeler and went to Penn State.  The line moved fairly quickly as they called by ticket number.  I was #114.  While I was there, everything seemed to be running very smoothly.  It didn’t take long to get a ticket, they had merchandise you could buy to get signed, and Jesse James arrived right on time.

As for the card show portion, I’d say there were (20-25) dealers.  I didn’t see that many selling new sealed hobby boxes.  One dealer had a truckload of retail boxes though.  A good mix of vintage and new single cards could be seen.  One dealer had a few Harry Kalas bobbleheads, but I already owned them.  The one card I did inquire about was a Mike Schmidt 2001 Topps Archives Rookie Reprint Bat Relic.  There was no visible price on it, but the card was in a case with other cards listed for $10-$20.  After asking the dealer how much it cost, I found out there was a $50 price written on the back.  The lowest they would go was $40.  Well overpriced.

Overall it was a decent show.  The autograph guests are what caught my attention.  This takes me back to when I first started collecting, and met Scott Rolen at a mall show in 1996-97.

Pittsburgh Steelers tight end Jesse James

Card of the Day: Edgerrin James 1999 Collector’s Edge First Place Pro Signatures Authentic

Card of the Day: Jesse James 2015 Topps RC Auto

Card of the Day: James Shields 2013 Bowman Chrome Red Refractor

Manning, Jeter, & King James Highlight CollectorCrate’s First Exclusive

UPDATE

• This company is no longer in business.

CollectorCrate is one of the more interesting things to hit the hobby recently.  For a monthly fee CollectorCrate will send you a box packed with sports stuff each month.  I was happy to receive and open the first round of boxes to go out.

By the looks of it, CollectorCrate is preparing to include it’s very first exclusive item within their boxes.  Artist Brad Utterstrom drew three different sketches – LeBron James, Derek Jeter, and Peyton Manning.  Each box will include a sketch print card of one of these players.  Utterstrom has worked with various card manufacturers in the past such as Topps, Leaf, and Cryptozoic.

Exclusive items should really help bring in more subscribers.  Now let’s see some exclusive bobbleheads, Funko Pop! figures, Lil’ Teammates, and OYOs.  I also think they should send out a large CollectorCrate to one lucky subscriber per month.  One that’s filled with sealed boxes and high-end stuff.

Card of the Day: James Harrison 2008 Topps Mayo #119

Back-To-Back Bobblehead Nights Round Out Busy August

Well… my busy August has officially come to an end.  It all started exactly one month ago today while heading to Cleveland for the 2014 National.  Then it was on to Little League and ending this week with back-to-back bobblehead nights in State College and Williamsport.

Thursday night the State College Spikes gave out bobbleheads of Penn State’s new head coach James Franklin.  These were given to the first 1,000 fans through the gate.  I got there two hours before the gates opened.  So early I didn’t even have to pay for parking.  I wasn’t the first one in line though.  Two guys had been there since 10:30 a.m.  The gates opened at 6:00 p.m.  The Spikes won 1-0 over the Williamsport Crosscutters.

On Friday night the Williamsport Crosscutters gave out bobbleheads of Andrew McCutchen to the first 1,000 fans.  McCutchen played for the Crosscutters when they were affiliated with the Pirates.  The Crosscutters lost 7-1 against the Jammers.

Card of the Day: LeBron James 2002 SA-GE Pangos #1