Sports Card Dealers
East Coast National returns to Westchester County (N.Y.) for big show
It has been more than three years since JP’s Sports/Rock Solid Promotions has hosted a sports memorabilia show at the famous Westchester County Center in White Plains, N.Y.
The show, known as the East Coast National, will be back on Aug. 18-20 as show promoters Jim Ryan and Brian Coppola return to the facility they call “home.”
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When large arenas were shut down during COVID in March 2020, the Westchester County Center was closed for approximately 18 months and used for the distribution of vaccines to New York City residents. Shortly after the pandemic, Hurricane Henri hit Westchester, flooding the basement of the facility and damaging all the equipment needed for events, including a forklift and two elevators.
After the hurricane, NYC officials replaced the basketball court/show floor, the stage and stage lighting and made other repairs and updates to the facility.
JP’s got their first look at the remodeled county center in April and got the green light to run a sports memorabilia show again.
“We decided that with the current market conditions as hot as they are, it is time to run the biggest show New York has seen in decades,” said Coppola, who, along with Ryan, is also part of the JBJ Corporation group taking over the National Sports Collectors Convention later this year.
The Aug. 18-20 event will be JP’s largest show to date with more the 400 dealers. The group is opening all of the convention space in the building for dealers and autograph signings, including the main exhibit floor, the side rooms and the basement.
“No expense will be spared for this event,” Coppola and Ryan said. “The budget has been expanded to include additional marketing and advertising to support the additional customer base needed to drive an event this large.”
JP’s has signed six free autograph guests for the show, including 1983 World Series MVP Rick Dempsey, Baseball Hall of Famer David Ortiz, Basketball Hall of Famers Julius Erving and Allen Iverson and New York Giants legend and Pro Football Hall of Famer Lawrence Taylor.
A special Saturday night signing will feature New York Yankees first baseman Anthony Rizzo and other Yankees players to be announced later.
Also scheduled to make his first appearance in more than 30 years is former New York Mets closer Randy Myers, who will be signing with Rob Dibble and Norm Charlton, the other two members of the famous “Nasty Boys.”
“Mr. Myers is one of the very last signatures that ’86 Mets fans need to retire their active team pieces,” Coppola said. “His appearance is vital to Mets collectors and will be a big hit for those 1986 Mets collectors. JP’s is overjoyed with this announcement.”
Among the hobby companies scheduled to be at the show include: COMC (Check Out my Cards); grading companies Beckett and SGC; James Spence Authentication (JSA); and auction houses Memory Lane Inc., Heritage Auctions and Clean Sweep Auctions.
JP’s also announced that Charles Byrd of CMB Cards and John Goodman of Goodman Sportscards would be presented with the Ron Vitro Award, which honors longtime dealers for their commitment to the hobby.
For more information, please visit www.nyshows.org.
