Night Owl Cards

I'm not following the Olympics quite as much as I should be, only because our coverage of the Olympics at the newspaper is preventing me from following them (does that even make sense?) But I still am having a great time when I am watching, and living so close to Canada always gives me a perspective that many others don't have (namely watching events on television as they happen). I decided to grab another pack of Topps' U.S. Olympic team set the other day. The cards were buried behind all the newer stuff that Topps has issued since the Olympic set came out. That made me sad. Because this is the time to open cards like these. I know collectors have to obsessively buy whatever is new and then discard it for the Next Thing two weeks later. But back when these cards first arrived , I didn't even know who three-quarters of the Olympians were. Now I don't even know who half of the Olympians are. But, you know, that's progress. I actually can identify some of t...

I have always thought that someone should issue an Olympic trading card set during an Olympic year. It seems like a natural. But I can only remember insert-type Olympic sets, usually focused on one particular sport, included in a larger, non-Olympic set. This is the first time I've seen a card set that encompasses multiple Olympic teams. And I say, it's about time. Unfortunately, Topps limits the set to U.S. athletes only. And as you can see by the labeling, some may not even end up as Olympians. They are "hopefuls" right now. That's kind of stinky. But I think issuing the set before the Olympics is a little more appropriate than issuing it after the Olympics, when everyone knows who the athletes are but have probably moved onto something else. The Olympics are a very "of the moment" event. They're almost like a fad, something that's here and gone. They don't have a lot of staying power. But, when they are taking place, there is no...