The significance of "The Nationals"

I was contacted by a board member a short while back asking me what it was like and the significance of it. I got to thinking what my response is but then thought what would Net 54 say?

To me it's my time for a vacation with friends and getting to share something I am passionate about with others that share the same sickness.

[atx840]

Really wish I could this year as I've never been to a show. Flight and hotel alone would run $1500. Chicago is a go though.

Good luck hunting everyone!

[Exhibitman]

Well, it is 20,000 or so card geeks hanging out, cracking jokes that no one who isn't a card geek would get, having fun. Sort of a rolling nerd party where the main objective is to live and breathe hobby for a week. You spend the whole day trolling the aisles of the show looking at all things card and card-related, then the evenings in the hotel bar visiting with hobby friends. You probably won't get bargains, especially when the cost of travel is factored in, but if you collect a hodge podge of bric a brac like I do, you may well find some rare to impossible pieces. Any 'serious' collector should try to make it to at least one.

[Rob D.]

I guess you could call it the World Serie of sports collecting.

[HRBAKER]

It's where men (most nerds, some with poor hygiene) gather to buy and sell little pictures of other men, mostly dead.

Seriously, it's great fun and an absolute orgy of cards, memorabilia and other sports related collectibles. As mentioned bf the highlight for me is mostly meeting up annually with a great group of hobby friends.

[Jewish-collector]

The National is one of the great experiences in this hobby. The Net54 dinner is the highlight of the National !!! There are dealers who only do the National. They bring their best stuff to this show !!! I encourage any collector to go to this show every year !!!

I treat this show as a vacation. There's always plenty of activities to do in the evenings after the show each day. And to save on costs, I always drive (instead of flying) & usually stay at a lower end motel away from the event facility.

[Bocabirdman]

Originally Posted by Exhibitman

Well, it is 20,000 or so card geeks hanging out, cracking jokes that no one who isn't a card geek would get, having fun. Sort of a rolling nerd party where the main objective is to live and breathe hobby for a week. You spend the whole day trolling the aisles of the show looking at all things card and card-related, then the evenings in the hotel bar visiting with hobby friends. You probably won't get bargains, especially when the cost of travel is factored in, but if you collect a hodge podge of bric a brac like I do, you may well find some rare to impossible pieces. Any 'serious' collector should try to make it to at least one.

About a year ago, I went to a small local show. About 20 vendors had a monthly gig at a local Boys Club. The show was uneventful save the fact that I renewed a friendship from 20 years ago. Sadly, the shows stopped shortly thereafter. Last week that vendor shot me an email saying that after a long search, the group of vendors had found a new spot. I went last Saturday. I DID score the three T206s that I recently posted about in the Monster Number thread but the highlight of the day was seeing 10 vendors squashed into a room no bigger than the average living room. One was sprawled out over a third of the room and the other nine were tripping over each other in the other two/thirds.There was zero room to move . Everyone was sidling like crabs. The afternoon was fantastic. We all shared a laugh over the things we do for this hobby, both as customers and vendors. We wound up spilling into the parking lot like teens at a high school dance. By the end of it all, we were all "buds" and some new friendships promise to grow. The National is a whole lot like this show, only in a slightly bigger room with a thousand times as many folks sidling about. The cards will be there, sure, but more importantly so will a sea of like-minded people. I can think of nothing better.