The Elk Grove Bullets Take On Cooperstown, NY!: Cooperstown..The Chills! Thrills..and Skills: Let's Talk About Pins, Baybee!

...And we're back.

My apologies for the delay. Due to some technical difficulties with loading the photos and the hustle and bustle nature of our day-to-day schedule, I have been writing this particular update since Sunday.

So where were we? Oh yes..PINS! Without insulting anyone in Blog Land (i.e. Cyberspace/the Great Void) I am going t0 take you on a tour (not a 3 hour one) of the pin trading experience that happens while staying at Cooperstown. When I began this blog I promised to provide you with the sights, smells, and sounds of all things Cooperstown. So here we go..

But first! Ladies and Gentlemen! Children of all ages!.. Put your hands together for - the -

Norcal Bullets of Elk Grove 2o10 Cooperstown pin!

Pin design created by: Laura Schanning & Heidi Jamison

Pins created by: Express Trading Pins

What is pin trading ?
Technically, the pin trading party is scheduled (according to the CTown schedule) to take place on Opening Day. That is what the schedule dictates, but how it really went was something like this:

Most of the players drove through the gates of Cooperstown on Friday, the 18th at approximately 6:30pm. From the moment the Bullets arrived in the park players from the other teams were coming up to the cars eagerly wanting to begin the pin trading festivities. Saturday, the 19th was Opening Day. On this day all family members are able to go to the park and be part of the action for a limited amount of time. Could it be? Was I actually going to "THE"
Cooperstown Dreams Park? After all this time I was finally going to be able to see the park we have been talking about for the last 8 months. Cooperstown here, Cooperstown there, EVERYWHERE a Cooperstown (E- I - E -I - O).

WOW! I was on the inside! I was seeing, touching, and feeling Cooperstown. Within minutes of being in the park, I realized I was smack dab in the middle of the pin trading extravaganza.
I stood back and observed all of the action unfold.

What I saw reminded me of a scavenger hunt. Let me further define that-- A scavenger hunt-- after having 2 cans of Red Bull. There was a sea of kids running all over the place going from barrack to barrack in hopes of finding a pin better than the next. In fact, the bigger and more blinged out, the better. Speaking of Bullets.. and pin trading...put your hands together for some Bullets I was able to stop (more like hold hostage) long enough to snap a shot of them while engaged in the pin trading party.

(Above: Stu Davies)

( Above: Kevin Fitzgerald)

(Above: Jonathan Kelly)

One aspect I found interesting is that the kids are not always trading a pin for a pin. Players will go around trading for any pin that they do not yet have. What that means is that they will offer you a pin for another pin from a different team (make sense?). But it is not uncommon to have a player snub your pin. If your pin is too small, or not blingy enough, pin swap...DENIED. This act of rejecting a pin is called: Pin Snobbery.

Okay so let us review: Pins = Huge experience within Cooperstown- a staple of the Dreams Park. Purpose: To have all of the teams interact and break the ice before games begin. It's also the gift that keeps on giving because throughout the week, this past-time keeps the players occupied; especially the ones that are competitive about getting all of the pins. What kind of pins are preferred?: If possible, all of them. However, it's the bigger and more blinged out ones that are coveted most. If someone does not want to trade with you because your pin is not up to par this is referred to as: Pin Snobbery.
And there you have it. Cooperstown Pin Trading 101.

Now that you know what the pin trading experience consists of, let us take it a step further and enlighten all of you Bullets fans with a behind the scenes look at what pin trading was like for the Bullets. Did they spend every night staring at their pins and rearranging them on their towels?