Oh my Goodness, that show is dangerous to the bank account. First one because the selection is always best at the start. Then another. And then it’s just WTF....
Great to see Neal and Mark. Thanks for the Sentimiento Nacional Choctaw, Mark! Very rich, flavorful, fairly strong, and ruggedly earthy. I also had the great pleasure of meeting Rob (Robcap) who came all the way from Australia. I saw Crash at his Greywoodie booth. They look like nicely made classics and a real bargain. Crash shared a table with Chillucky (Lucky), who was selling his very cool pipe travel case. Lucky generously donated one of the cases to the silent auction and it was purchased by Ping Zhan! I was hoping to meet George (georged), but I didn’t see him. Other CPCC members who contribute to the forum and were there were Dino and Winton.
Neal knows EVERYBODY, it seems. He introduced me to Tom Eltang, who was very friendly. The show is littered with people you’ve heard of. You can’t help but sit next to a few. I got to hang out with all sorts of well-known folks, sharing a bowl and a beer. Jeremy Reeves, Per Jensen, Adam Davidson, Glen Whelan (Peterson), Mark Irwin, Nate King, JT Cooke, Lee Erck, Brad Pohlmann, Silver Gray, Jeff Gracik, Ernie Markle, Fred Hanna, Marty Pulvers, Chance Whittamore, Ron Cooper, Jon David Cole, Brian Levine, Jeremiah from Bullfrog Pipes, NASPC’’s The Pipe Collector author Mike Zicha, and Shane Ireland. I’m certain I’m missing others.
The Slow Smoke was pretty interesting — especially the Russians and Ukranians, who are super-intense. Manduela was first out. I was giving my new Von Erck poker it’s maiden voyage as the competition began. Over an hour into it, I was still on my first light and it only went out because Lee walked up to chat. That pipe is going to get used a LOT.
I got to show my big honkin’ Parker to Rich Esserman, who graciously proclaimed it a “modern magnum”, which I think means it’s not quite a magnum. But he did offer to buy it if I ever want to sell. He also helped me date it to the mid-70s. Finally, I was honored to be asked by Mark Irwin to sign the cover page of “The Peterson Pipe” as a contributor. I signed WAY off to the side to make room for the real contributors.
If you can manage to make it to the show, try to come by Thursday night. That’s when the show really begins. Lots of artisan sales take place starting as soon as the carvers arrive. I bought the majority of my pipes Wednesday and Thursday. Another sleeper time is the after party, so to speak. It’s quiet and a good time to really hang with folks.
Great to see Neal and Mark. Thanks for the Sentimiento Nacional Choctaw, Mark! Very rich, flavorful, fairly strong, and ruggedly earthy. I also had the great pleasure of meeting Rob (Robcap) who came all the way from Australia. I saw Crash at his Greywoodie booth. They look like nicely made classics and a real bargain. Crash shared a table with Chillucky (Lucky), who was selling his very cool pipe travel case. Lucky generously donated one of the cases to the silent auction and it was purchased by Ping Zhan! I was hoping to meet George (georged), but I didn’t see him. Other CPCC members who contribute to the forum and were there were Dino and Winton.
Neal knows EVERYBODY, it seems. He introduced me to Tom Eltang, who was very friendly. The show is littered with people you’ve heard of. You can’t help but sit next to a few. I got to hang out with all sorts of well-known folks, sharing a bowl and a beer. Jeremy Reeves, Per Jensen, Adam Davidson, Glen Whelan (Peterson), Mark Irwin, Nate King, JT Cooke, Lee Erck, Brad Pohlmann, Silver Gray, Jeff Gracik, Ernie Markle, Fred Hanna, Marty Pulvers, Chance Whittamore, Ron Cooper, Jon David Cole, Brian Levine, Jeremiah from Bullfrog Pipes, NASPC’’s The Pipe Collector author Mike Zicha, and Shane Ireland. I’m certain I’m missing others.
The Slow Smoke was pretty interesting — especially the Russians and Ukranians, who are super-intense. Manduela was first out. I was giving my new Von Erck poker it’s maiden voyage as the competition began. Over an hour into it, I was still on my first light and it only went out because Lee walked up to chat. That pipe is going to get used a LOT.
I got to show my big honkin’ Parker to Rich Esserman, who graciously proclaimed it a “modern magnum”, which I think means it’s not quite a magnum. But he did offer to buy it if I ever want to sell. He also helped me date it to the mid-70s. Finally, I was honored to be asked by Mark Irwin to sign the cover page of “The Peterson Pipe” as a contributor. I signed WAY off to the side to make room for the real contributors.
If you can manage to make it to the show, try to come by Thursday night. That’s when the show really begins. Lots of artisan sales take place starting as soon as the carvers arrive. I bought the majority of my pipes Wednesday and Thursday. Another sleeper time is the after party, so to speak. It’s quiet and a good time to really hang with folks.
