Was The National more dead than usual this year?

[Austin]

From all the pictures from The National I've seen on this board and others, it appears the aisles were relatively empty.
I went to the conventions of 1986 and 1990 in Arlington, Texas, and they were elbow-to-elbow with tens of thousands of collectors.
They were so crowded it was claustrophobic.
But the energy was electric.
Of course, that was during the height of the hype of the sportscard hobby.
But all the pictures of the 2009 event just look empty.
Was it really that barren? Or were most of the pictures taken in the early hours before the crowds arrived?

 

[BunchOBull]

I think if you rate Nationals from the last 15 years against Nationals in the '80s and early '90s...they're all dead in comparison.

 

[KandKCards]

I actually heard from a lot of dealers that traffic was pretty good. A big time dealer I'm friends with even said he did much better than expected.

 

[Austin]

I think if you rate Nationals from the last 15 years against Nationals in the '80s and early '90s...they're all dead in comparison.

That's certainly true.
Hopefully the trend is only flat-lining now, and not continuing to decline.
Maybe when the economy rebounds, the hobby's popularity will get re-energized, although it will never be like the glory days of the mid to late '80s.

I actually heard from a lot of dealers that traffic was pretty good. A big time dealer I'm friends with even said he did much better than expected.

That's good news.
It's always encouraging to read that the hobby is remaining somewhat healthy.

 

[notoriousrmb]

Compared to the 90's I would say the number of collectors in general has dropped significantly...however those that remain seem to have more cash to spend.