Last Monday I flew out to Indianapolis (where I have been way too often over the past six months) for private signings with Peyton Manning and Tony Dungy. I spent the bulk of Monday afternoon/evening setting up the pieces for the Tuesday signings. After the set-up I watched the end of the Yankees/Indians game in what may have been (hopefully not) the final game of the Joe Torre era. I figured this is as good a time as any (not that my opinion matters) to throw my support in Joe's direction. He is one of , if not the, best managers in the game and deserves to be there on the bench when Yankee Stadium closes and the new stadium opens. Anyway, Coach Dungy arrived at 9:00 AM sharp. I figured he would be right on time. This was the second time I have met Tony as I was just coming in from a signing last time he was at our office. I really enjoyed talking with him about the NFL and am looking forward to reading his best-selling book on my next flight (most likely to South Bend next week). Dungy signed some spectacular items including carry-off photos, mini-helmets and footballs. As soon as the signing was completed I began packing up the Dungy product to make more room for Peyton to sign. I held back a handful of footballs to get dual signed with Manning. Peyton began signing at about noon. It always takes a while when he signs as there are so many Super Bowl 41 MVP inscriptions to be written out. After signing some strong individual product (including photos, mini-helmets, footballs and revolution helmets) Peyton added his signature to another round of Manning Family pieces. These were the ones that his father Archie signed last month. These items are so unique and have quickly become one of our best-sellers. Hopefully soon this round will be complete. Ironically Eli Manning was appearing at Last Licks Massapequa on the same day so we will have to get him in a few weeks. Once Peyton completed the signing my work, as always, was just getting started. It took me close to eight hours to box up and prep the product to be shipped back to New York. It is such a monotonous process that takes forever. After finally finishing up I went to sleep for a few hours and then headed to the airport for the first flight back to New York. As always I had several travel problems including a cancelled flight (after we boarded we had to deplane due to mechanical problems) and two more flight delays. I finally did touch down at La Guardia late that afternoon. Overall, despite the delays and cancellations, it was an incredibly strong trip. The Colts look poised to repeat as champions and the gave us an opportunity to re-up on some classic Manning and Dungy product.
We have a ton of amazing signings coming up so keep checking back for updates.