The things we have done for Cards!!

[Powell]

I am a witness!

[atx840]

Powell you built an awesome collection and thank you for sharing The Wall!

[ALBB]

back when a lot of auctions had that 10 minute rule......sometimes still bidding as the sun was coming up !

[Leon]

I remember being the very last one to bid in some of Lew's phone auctions. Being the last person to bid had it's benefits!

I was in Jamaica on vacation, in a shower in 1997 or '98, bidding on the raw,'25 Gehrig Exhibit I eventually won, on the phone in a Mastro auction. They had it marked as NRMT but it graded a 5?....then went into a 6 holder later. Too bad I sold it to Hal. I could have retired with that card now.
.

[LEHR]

-I paid something ridiculous like $30/$40 a day for internet service while on a Norwegian cruise ship for my honeymoon so I could bid on items from the middle of the ocean.
-I've stayed up till 4am bidding in auctions when I had to be at work at 6am.
-I've faked an upset stomach so I could miss a meeting and sit in the bathroom sniping stuff on eBay.
-I've bid on items at 10pm from a doom buggy in the Haunted Mansion at Disneyland.

My wife is very supportive of my collecting but she probably thinks I'm a little crazy.

[JustinD]

Originally Posted by Leon

I was in Jamaica on vacation

I spend time in Ocho Rios each and every year. It has really become one of my favorite activities to sit under the thatched umbrella cabanas and spend too much money on my ipad. I always have to explain away the packages that show up when we get home, lol.

Having the beach butlers dropping off mixed drinks as soon as one gets low does not help the bidding inhibitions at all...

[MVSNYC]

Ryan and I spoke that night while he was at the airport...He sent a pic of himself holding the Wagner out of the blue (below). He kept the deal super private, and just dropped that photo on me. He then called, and we were giddy like kids...It was a lifetime achievement moment for him; happy he shared it with me. And like he said, that was very early during Covid, and it felt like a Navy Seals, secret mission to get in and get out, with the Wagner in hand!

Re: me, too many stories to list just one, but I've been there like many of you- bidding in auctions while on vacation. Doing trade deals on the phone while at work. Bidding on cards while at dinner, at events. Going into the bathroom to place bids, or in the "old days", stepping outside of a restaurant or an event to call the auction house to place phone bids, or close a trade deal with a fellow collector, etc, etc.

Great hobby. Great addiction.

[ullmandds]

I've flown across the country numerous times...sometimes staying less than 24 hours. I've endured annoying, boring blabber for hours...just because I had to have you!!!! Sat through movies and shows I had no interest in seeing. Hung out with your annoying friends!

The things I've done for sex!

Oh was this about cards???? I've pulled all nighters...met strangers in strange places...made a habit of visiting card stores when i've travelled...that's about it.

[mrreality68]

Originally Posted by MVSNYC

Ryan and I spoke that night while he was at the airport...He sent a pic of himself holding the Wagner out of the blue (below). He kept the deal super private, and just dropped that photo on me. He then called, and we were giddy like kids...It was a lifetime achievement moment for him; happy he shared it with me. And like he said, that was very early during Covid, and it felt like a Navy Seals, secret mission to get in and get out, with the Wagner in hand!

Re: me, too many stories to list just one, but I've been there like many of you- bidding in auctions while on vacation. Doing trade deals on the phone while at work. Bidding on cards while at dinner, at events. Going into the bathroom to place bids, or in the "old days", stepping outside of a restaurant or an event to call the auction house to place phone bids, or close a trade deal with a fellow collector, etc, etc.

Great hobby. Great addiction.

Wow some great stuff

Love the Ryan Story.

For me nothing extreme accept as I mentioned moving all my cards to raise funds to get my 1 key card my Rookie Ruth. Then building my collection with that 1 card as the only card and then the center piece.

Unless you consider making an exchange for a card for cash in a Burger King parking lot in Queens with SportsCard Pete as odd (or the norm)

[Powell]

I am building a new wall…

[Eric72]

My crazy story is more of a slow burn than one white-hot moment. I acquired roughly 250,000 sports cards roughly 20 years ago.

These were the "common boxes" from a store that was changing owners. The old guy had a habit of breaking boxes for the hits. The new guy was going in more of a Pokemon card / Hallmark store direction and didn't want mountains of cardboard laying around.

If you've ever moved ~50 monster boxes of cards into your house, you know how bat-shit crazy this truly is. I went through them, one at a time. I pulled some decent singles from there; however, nothing earth-shattering. After I finished with each box, I would top it off with more commons and sell it on eBay.

Probably wound up with roughly $2,000 and about the same amount of value in singles I kept. It only took about a year (1 box per week) and about 50 trips to the Post Office.

[Leon]

I have recounted this before, I will never forget my rendezvous to sell a T205 Johnson in a 7 holder, I got from Scott B, many moons ago (22+ years). It was at a Taco Bell in, a really small out of the way town (at the time), Wylie. Tx.
I have gotten on planes to deliver cards a few times. Not a big deal.
.

[Rhotchkiss]

Originally Posted by Powell

I am a witness!

Hi Powell! I hope all is well. That was a wild trip for me- hanging out in baggage claim, looking at cards, while a few masked-passengers picked up bags now and then. Very good memory. I remember the Charlotte airport was freezing- they just pumped in freezing air hoping the airflow would minimize Covid spread; then you get on a plane, sit next to some random, and we all took our masks on and off to take sips of whatever we were drinking (bc you can’t spread Covid while eating/drinking!!)

Chris, great post- and that’s the mountain top story I mentioned in my initial post.

[Jobu]

Powell had to do some pretty extreme stuff for cards --- like meeting Ryan H in person.

Originally Posted by Powell

I am a witness!

[Rhotchkiss]

Originally Posted by Jobu

Powell had to do some pretty extreme stuff for cards --- like meeting Ryan H in person.

I didn’t have to travel far for us to meet, Bryan. Loved the in-person t213-1 Evers Yellow Sky handoff at the Hilton (or Marriot) on Connecticut Ave, DC 5-6 years ago. That was fun!

PS - currently in Madison right now visiting my son. Go Badgers!

[ClementeFanOh]

I can't top lots of these, but here's my effort...

About 7 years ago, I met a card collector at the The Toy Barn (a high-end car
dealership in Dublin, Ohio) to do a stone cold trade we negotiated online.
He drove from Cleveland and I drove from the Dayton area (so I won that
bit). I remember the card I traded- an E90-1 Ty Cobb PSA 3. For the life of
me, I can't recall what I got in return (I sure hope it was nice He was a
great guy, but I remember how strange the circumstance was, I felt like a
character in an espionage movie.

Trent King

[pokerplyr80]

I remember going out to dinner with some of my wife's friends, and a Memory Lane auction with several signed Mantles was ending. I ended up winning a couple, but she was not at all pleased.

[jethrod3]

I routinely risk my marriage every time I leave the dinner table to watch my bids on online auction lots that are about to close. Other than that, I braved busy streets, like many of us I suppose, to collect returnable bottles for the deposit so that I could buy 1973-1975 Topps baseball and football cards with the proceeds.

[fkm_bky]

Nice! I’m in Madison too, well Middleton. The great Wazoo is here too. On Wisconsin!

Never really did anything too crazy for cards other than some shell games with $ to keep it on the down low at home ��

Bill

Originally Posted by Rhotchkiss

I didn’t have to travel far for us to meet, Bryan. Loved the in-person t213-1 Evers Yellow Sky handoff at the Hilton (or Marriot) on Connecticut Ave, DC 5-6 years ago. That was fun!

PS - currently in Madison right now visiting my son. Go Badgers!

[oldjudge]

Originally Posted by Rhotchkiss

I didn’t have to travel far for us to meet, Bryan. Loved the in-person t213-1 Evers Yellow Sky handoff at the Hilton (or Marriot) on Connecticut Ave, DC 5-6 years ago. That was fun!

PS - currently in Madison right now visiting my son. Go Badgers!

That's neat (the Madison part)--we have more in common. My younger son went to UW Madison, albeit about twenty years ago.

[Rhotchkiss]

UW is an amazing school and Madison is a great town. I wish I had more time- I would try to meet some local-collectors. Instead, I am about to head to a fraternity tailgate and sit in a constant downpour watching our football team (the worst in 2 decades) play as underdogs to the university of Maryland (ironically my home/birth state).

[fkm_bky]

Me too! Except today I get to entertain clients at the new Covered Loge section in the south end zone. Warm and dry for me! I started here in 91’ so have seen this program grow over the years. Tough year this year but 2 out of 30+ years isn’t bad!

Enjoy your time here.

Bill

Originally Posted by Rhotchkiss

UW is an amazing school and Madison is a great town. I wish I had more time- I would try to meet some local-collectors. Instead, I am about to head to a fraternity tailgate and sit in a constant downpour watching our football team (the worst in 2 decades) play as underdogs to the university of Maryland (ironically my home/birth state).

[pokerplyr80]

Madison is my home town, I was back last year around the holidays. Didn't make it to a football game but did see a Bucks game while I was there. Enjoy the game today!

[oldjudge]

Originally Posted by Rhotchkiss

UW is an amazing school and Madison is a great town. I wish I had more time- I would try to meet some local-collectors. Instead, I am about to head to a fraternity tailgate and sit in a constant downpour watching our football team (the worst in 2 decades) play as underdogs to the university of Maryland (ironically my home/birth state).

BMW Sportscards (Brian and Michael Wentz) is based in Madison. They have always had incredible cards and are very knowledgeable.