Grabbing Cards in South Dakota

 

Readers of this blog know the drill: my annual summer trip to see my brother in South Dakota. It is always an incredible time packed with things to see and do. Honestly, I can’t imagine how I’d cope if I actually lived there permanently. I mean, the summers are gorgeous with low humidity, and you pay zero state income tax. Sure, you have to brave some brutal, freezing winters (I'm used to that) and the occasional storm, but every place has its tradeoffs.  While there we did some gambling and hit one the many hiking trails.

Now that is what you call a butte! We braved the threat of rattlesnakes and tackled a grueling 1,000-foot vertical climb. The photo in the header is from the summit and captures the exact scene that made every bit of the effort worth it. Granted, it is only a 3-mile round-trip trail, but the intense incline leaves your legs absolutely burning. To make things even more interesting, we stupidly decided to hike right in the dead of the midday heat!

And did I mention how addicting Deadwood can be? I've been to Vegas, and it is just too flashy; the casinos feel miles apart. Deadwood is the ultimate anti-Vegas. It features smaller casinos, zero blinding neon lights, and it is so much cheaper. I love that you can easily walk to a half-dozen different spots within just a block or two. 

Unfortunately, this time, the casino scene took a big bite out of  my card budget.  Fortunately, Johnny of Johnny's Trading Spot helped me out by sending a stack of Kirby Puckett's for my PC!  The bunch shown above are some favorites.  The black bordered 1992 Players Choice I had to look up.  That came out of a Cartwrights baseball magazine.  Very cool.

That Chef Boyardee is a nice foodie, and I recently bought the Duracell set, so that one will stay with the PC.  The 2016 Panini DK is a favorite, it has a canvas feel to it.

I really like Topps glossies, but the Mojo and Metal win this batch.

For some reason whenever I buy Mosaic cards it's always either football or basketball so this Puckett is nice to have and that Rite Aid card is the first from that set to be added to the PC.

I had commented on a post about some 1957 cards Johnny made available.  All of those Pucketts are a great bonus, but these vintage football cards are really the star of this post.  Eddie LeBaron stood just 5'7" and was the very first starting quarterback for the Dallas Cowboys.  He is in the College Football HOF.  

These four were also in the package.  Very cool vintage cards.  Thank you Johnny!!

Did you think I didn't pickup any cards in South Dakota?  After getting picked up at the Rapid City airport, our first stop was a card shop.  I found these six for my 1956 set build.

I bundled the 1956 cards with this Ohtani SP for $2 each.

I also found a Gaylord Perry '62 rookie.

The biggest card I brought home? This 2017 Luis Arraez autographed rookie, graded a perfect double 10! Fun story: several years ago, my brother actually bought this right in front of me at a local shop. He did it out of spite because I scooped up a Kirill Kaprizov rookie right before he could. :)  I honestly thought I’d have to pry this card from his cold, dead hands.  Fortunately, he is shifting his focus to astronomy and cooling down on sports cards. To help fund his new stargazing hobby, he finally agreed to sell it to me!

That’s all for this haul! I’m already planning my next trip out to the Black Hills. Hopefully, the tables treat me a bit better next time so the card budget stays intact.  Until next time, good luck with your own rips and mail days. Catch you in the next post!