My Goals For The National

Approximately 2 weeks before I'm set to walk into the National Sports Collectors Convention in Cleveland for the very first time in my life, I've finally narrowed down all that I want to accomplish into 7 achievable goals. Similar to previous goals I've made for the Mansfield and Shriners shows, I'm intending on dividing my time throughout the 3 days at the show (Thursday, Friday, and Saturday) and attempt to achieve each and every goal that I set.

I'm not expecting anything from the show simply because I have no idea what to expect. Sure, I can create some goals that I can see myself accomplishing. However, if I attempt to meticulously plan out each and everything I want to do, there's no way I'll be able to make that happen. From what I've heard, The National is unlike any other show. I never have concrete plans for smaller shows, so why attempt that for a show of this magnitude? 

Still, going to this show without any idea as to what I want to purchase is pretty ridiculous. So, I've come up with 7 goals that I look to accomplish over the course of the 3 days I'm in Cleveland. In addition to the extended recap posts, I plan on doing, I'm also going to check to see how many of these goals I actually end up achieving. Here they are.

#1 Take major steps towards completing 1975 Topps

After finally completing 1972 Topps around a month ago, I've turned my attention towards completing the extremely colorful and iconic 1975 Topps set. Because I was directing most of my attention towards completing '72, I never realized how much of the 1975 Topps set I had until pretty recently. I'm not sure if any of the cards I'm missing are super valuable or not. Either way, I see myself with fewer than 100 cards needed to complete the set by the time I leave Cleveland.

#2 Find reasonably priced 1959 Fleer Ted Williams cards

I've seen cards from the 1959 Fleer Ted Williams set before at shows, but the prices have been too steep for me to go for it. Even though I'm going to be bringing more money to The National than I do to local card shows, I'm not going to change my ways. If I find individual cards for $14 dollars or less, I'll definitely consider it. But if there aren't any reasonably priced 1959 Fleer Ted Williams cards available, then I'm not going to pay more than I have to for these cards.

#3 Buy a hobby or blaster box of some product

Whether I decide on a fairly-priced blaster box that appeals to me, an older hobby box that could still deliver something nice, or a new product, I do intend on buying either a blaster or maybe even a hobby box at The National. If I had my way, that product would be 2018 Topps Big League. Blasters are going for $10 while you can get a whole hobby box for around $40. They have some fantastic base cards, good-looking parallels, interesting inserts, and best of all, a well-chosen checklist with some retired players included. While I'm sad that Topps Bunt is likely finished, I'm happy with the set chosen to take its place.

#4 Get autographs of Al Kaline and Bob Gibson

I had originally intended to pursue autographs of Kaline and Gibson along with Randy Johnson and Ivan Rodriguez. However, after learning of the cost of each autograph ticket, I was forced to narrow down my choices. After finding this fantastic image of both Gibson and Kaline, I decided that these 2 were the perfect players to chase autographs of. I figured I can attempt to get Johnson and Rodriguez's autos at a later date which allows me to go after these 2 legends for autographs instead.

#5 Add to player collections without getting too caught up in them

Unless the dime bins at The National are the greatest I've ever seen in my life, and they could be, I'm going to try and not put all my eggs in one basket. What I mean by that is, I don't plan on spending oodles of money on player collection cards that I can get anywhere. The whole point of me going to The National is to acquire cards that are special and would be difficult to get anywhere else. So if the player collection cards I find are special, there's no objection, but if they're standard dime bins that I can get at home, I'll have to learn to limit myself.

#6 Focus primarily on want list cards

Instead of going all-out for player collection cards, I'm going to dedicate some of my resources to finding cards from my extensive want list. Not only does it include the 1959 Ted Williams and '75 Topps sets I mentioned before, but it also has what I need for 1976 and 1979 Topps. Moreover, it includes 2015 and 2017 Topps inserts, 2016-2018 Topps Heritage needs, and many more things I look to find at The National.

#7 Purchase something special

No matter what I eventually decide on, I want to bring something back from Cleveland that I'll always remember. I'd like something truly special that can stand out from everything else. Whether it be a rare autograph, some hobby box, a special vintage card or another item, a jersey, or something else that catches my eye, I'd like to find something so unique in Cleveland that I may not have ever seen it before. Something I'll associate with The National forever, even if my first show is also my final, I'll still have this special item to look back on.