To Boldly Go.......

Its my "maiden voyage" on this blog site. My first stab at blogging actually.









So I'll touch on a few topics and see how it goes.









In Nascar the big news of recent weeks has been Dale Earnhardt Jr. In the quest for a Cup Championship, he is leaving the employ of the race team his late father racing legend Dale Sr. founded. In 2008, Dale Jr. (DEJR) joins Hendrick Motorsports. Home of past champions and current 2007 Cup Champ contenders




Jeff Gordon and Jimmie Johnson.




Its a bold move for Jr. The pressure is now on him to put -up or shut-up. As he will now have the backing of one of if not THE powerhouse teams in all of motorsports.




How does this effect his collectibles? I see no downturn in value and at worst a stabilized pricing structure. Prices for common pieces will remain consistent...and interest will perk up if he does indeed eventually win that elusive championship. Keep in mind, the 1/24 Budweiser cars are not diecast collectors have ever been able to purchase at a large retailer.




If the #8 Budweiser Car of Tomorrow (COT) is produced this year, it will indeed be a much sought after piece as it will be the only Junior Budweiser COT car ever produced.




The other Budweiser themed collectibles have always been targeted to an adult clientele who are usually not as fickle in their choice of favorite driver. Some items may be hard to come by down the road as Junior begins the next phase of his career. Demand will depend upon his future success or lack thereof.









One of my personal favorite items being retailed these days are the affordable reprints offered by both DC and Marvel Comics . Marvel "Essentials" and DC's




"Showcase". The early adventures of all the core characters at the respective companies are offered, albeit in black and white on an inexpensive paper stock.




Still, its a TERRIFIC value for the comic fan who is either just starting out or as an older fan to reacquaint. Obviously, these books will have very little collectibility but as inexpensive reference reading to be enjoyed...its top-notch!








My wish: Its been 40 years since the "Impossible Dream" season of the 1967 Boston Red Sox. From worst to first to the World Series it marked the turnaround of the Red Sox franchise, re-igniting interest in the team that lasts to this day.


My hope would be for McFarlane to produce a Carl Yastrzemski Cooperstown figurine. Yaz was the 1967 A.L. MVP and the Triple Crown for leading the league in batting average, home runs and runs batted in. What better way to commemorate the anniversary?


And in a huge public relations coup that no doubt will tranlate to some fannies in the seats at the Fleet Center...the Boston Celtics acquired Kevin Garnett.


Suddenly the interest level in the Celts has risen 110%. We'll be hoping for at least a return to the playoffs to start providing that Garnett, Paul Pierce and Ray Allen remain healthy. The big task is to surround these players with a NBA caliber supporting cast of players. Roundball just got interesting again in the HUB.



The arrival of the Simpson's Movie has me thinking about just how many more new Simpson's collectibles there will be on the market. With the longevity of the Simpsons, collectors will have years and oodles of items to hunt down through the years to come.















And for me personally, that's one of the allures of collecting. The thrill of the "hunt". Whether the item is worth 10 cents or 10 thousand dollars.....building a collection piece by piece is fun.




There is a bit of the speculator in most collectors. But, I feel that one should collect because you LOVE that particular line of collectibles. Not how much you think its going to be worth monetarily down the road. We are also the stewards of all these items, keeping them in the best of condition to pass along to hopefully another future collector who will love the item just as much as we do now.