The Weekly Rip 6.15.24 [Memories]
Brett explores the power of spending time with your cards and the results that can follow
A big thank you to the Card Ladder team for being the official data sponsor of Stacking Slabs. Card Ladder makes me a better creator and collector. If you’re looking to make more data-driven collecting decisions make sure you give the app a spin.
Happy Father’s Day to the readers of this newsletter. I was blessed to become a Dad after over a half a decade of trying when my oldest daughter was born in 2021. The greatest shock of my entire life was at the beginning of last year when my wife surprised me with another positive pregnancy test. We were expecting again and we’d later find out it was another girl. I wear a lot of hats in my life. I’m a marketer, collector, husband, brother, son, but there’s nothing I love more than being a 2x Girl Dad to Jolene and Ruby. I feel so thankful to be in this position as I’m sure many of you who are reading this today.
I was preparing for today’s newsletter and the topic of earliest sports memories with my Dad shot to the top of my brain. I started thinking about the Indianapolis Colts and trying to understand the moment of when I became such a massive fan. The Colts mean so much to our city in Indianapolis, but it wasn’t always the case. My Dad didn’t grow up with the Colts. It wasn’t until 1984 when the infamous Mayflower trucks moved the Colts from Baltimore to Indianapolis. I was born a year later and my earliest memories of the Colts were nothing special. They were the definition of lousy. The Colts were always competing with Indiana’s attention on basketball. It was the home of Oscar Robertson, John Wooden, Larry Bird, Bob Knight and so many other legends that would come after it. Hoosiers care about winning. They care about basketball. To say the Colts played second fiddle to basketball when I was younger would be giving them the ultimate compliment.
I have a vivid memory that burns through my brain today. The Colts couldn’t sell out the Hoosier Dome (later known as RCA Dome) so the games would be blacked out locally. The only way that I could tune into the Colts when they were at home was sitting by the radio and listening to Colts broadcaster Bob Lamey call the games. I remember my Dad turning on the radio. The first thing he would say is, “Ok, let’s see how badly the Colts are getting beat right now” before he did it. If Jeff George wasn’t throwing touchdowns to the other team there was some random defender missing tackles. They were an absolute nightmare. The only time I’d ever hear them score points is when their place kicker Dean Biasucci would be 3 through the uprights. ‘
It wasn’t until 1995 when unexpectedly the Indianapolis Colts found themselves in the AFC Championship against the Pittsburgh Steelers. I remember being in the basement at 9025 Anchorage Drive watching the game on one of those massive, big box, big screen TVs. “Captain Comeback” Jim Harbaugh captivated the hearts and minds of our city that year. It was a small moment where it felt like the attention in the city had shifted momentarily from The Boom Baby Pacers to the Colts. The Colts were one Hail Mary dropped pass (I still think he caught it) by Aaron Bailey away from going to the Super Bowl that year. It was an unfortunate loss, but a moment that helped accelerate my fandom.
…then there was Peyton Manning and a Super Bowl win.
…and then there was Andrew Luck and I guess the rest is history.
I got to attend many games with my Dad in the Lucas Oil Stadium era of the Colts.
The game that always stands out in my mind was Sunday Night Football against the evil New England Patriots. The Colts stopped a Brady flat to Kevin Faulk on 4th and 2 and the stadium went absolutely bananas. I think I jumped in my Dad’s arms at that moment. It would have probably been a lot easier to catch me decades earlier, but as I mentioned I didn’t have many of those monumental moments child.
These are the moments that drive my collecting.
It’s so easy to get distracted collecting sports cards. We’ve got so many interests, passions, and desires. There’s shiny objects and always something new to steal our attention. Collecting is an evolution, The way that we collect one year looks different to the next year. There’s things that change and then there are always areas that remain the same.
Over the past couple of months I’ve been thinking a lot about the moments and memories that I’ve had with my favorite team of the course of my lifetime. I think we’re the most satisfied when our areas of focus map back to those memories. I’ll always collect the Colts at some level, but recently I’ve been getting more organized around my approach. This means taking out all of my cards and organizing them in a way that provides me with some sort of direction on where I want to head next.
It’s evaluating parallels that I love and opportunities to collect more Colts.
It’s embracing the element of team set building to help me relieve core memories.
It’s evaluating my favorite years and building sets around it.
There’s many bumps in the road as a fan.
There’s many changes that go on with our collecting.
I’ve found solace by reflecting on some of those core sports memories with my Dad over the course of my lifetime. I’m learning that these are the cards that will never leave my collection.
Hobby Shop Talk is Back This Week
Hobby Shop Talk returns on the main feed this Tuesday with Jamison Long, Owner at Port City Sports Collectibles. I love these conversations because they offer collectors a bird’s eye view of what is going down at the hobby shop level. Also, I’m finding these conversations are also giving me a great perspective of industry changes that are happening with Fanatics. Be sure to tune in on Tuesday and make sure you follow Port City Sports Collectibles on Instagram.
A Weekly Content Roundup
In the flagship episode I give a detailed breakdown of losing out on the 2022 Prizm Roman Reigns Black 1/1 and how the experience has already helped me in other areas of my collecting.
In this week’s episode of Auction Talk Nic shares about the process he goes through to evaluate new collecting lates, we talk private deals, and cards that interest us on the auction block.
Friday’s collector's conversation with Ben (@nonsensenamecards) was one of my favorite conversations that I’ve had on the podcast in a long time. He talked about his collection of historically and culturally significant first appearance cards and shared how he defines significance.
Joining the Stacking Slabs Patreon is The Best Way to Show Your Support
Collectors are joining Stacking Slabs Patreon to consume exclusive content, connect with other collectors, and promote their cards. I’m putting out new collector focused content in the group on a daily basis and it’s the hub for all of SSP’s video content. If you’re enjoying what I’m putting out on the main feeds check out what the group has to offer. I appreciate your attention and commitment to helping grow the damn brand. Join Today
A Collector To Follow
I love the collection that @cardicsportscards is building and the way he talks about the cards that he loves. He covers most sports and his affinity for Nomar is on full display. There are few collectors that are as engaged as Chris and hope more people check out his page.
I’m watching Beauty and the Beast with my oldest as I get ready to send this. We’re about to eat cinnamon rolls. I’m going to Gainbridge later to see the Indiana Fever take on the Chicago Sky. I’m going to the game with my Dad. Hopefully some new memories can be formed that drive my collection.
Enjoy time with your family today.
Thanks for supporting Stacking Slabs and beyond.
Take care,
Brett