Not a hello, but a warm, heartfelt, thoughtful goodbye!

[creasecollector]

Best of luck moving forward!

[jsokol1626]

Ed
Four days ago marked my 16th anniversary as a member of SCF. Although my feedback is nowhere near yours, I've been very active over the years and have also interacted with many good people on this site, some of whom have moved on as well. My on-line hobby experience goes all the way back to the old newsgroups and the AOL Grandstand message boards where trading, buying and selling came with a certain amount of risk.

I am so thankful that fellow hobbyists took the initiative to create websites to host the sports card community and develop safeguards to weed out dishonest people. Although many of those early sites are long gone SCF has persevered, grown and undergone numerous changes in order to stay relevant. Your are correct the hobby, as we know it today, is vastly different than it was all those years ago when I first began collecting. Who knew that we would see the rapid rise and eventual decline of card shops and monthly shows or that eBay would create an environment where anyone could easily start a card business while creating a highly competitive market.

I collect very little these days and spend a lot of time moving cards from my collection that have lost their appeal. I look at my boxes full of inserts that were once valuable and now are worth pennies. So, I understand your decision and before long I will follow suit. Good luck moving forward, you will be missed.

[krunchtyme]

Ed.... I hope it is only a break. It was always cool to see you posting. I always tried to work something out but as a super small Cowboys collector, I just couldn't always make it happen. Personally, I hope you just hang around for your insight in the hobby and now on the business side of things.

Either way, good luck in all you do!

[opulent jupiter]

All the best !!!! I hope you still stop in from time to time!

[Shaggy]

I have been trying to figure out how to write this for a while...

When I joined this site, I had about 200 cards, 3 of which were "good" cards at the time. The pride of my collection was a 2001 Sp Authentic Santana Moss patch RC card. I knew next to nothing about the hobby, the cards, or the players- I just wanted somewhere to trade my cards and meet some cool people.

In both counts, I would say I was successful. I have (as of this typing) the second highest number of deals ever on SCF, and the highest feedback ever on this site. I obtained, traded, and sold hundreds of thousands of cards. I served on staff twice, helping the site grow and become the most successful site for trading on the internet for a good long while. I met amazing people, some of whom have become friends in real life, which was always a nice bonus!

However- the fact is, things have changed. Most of my friends have moved on, either to new sites or to new hobbies. I have changed my focus as well, becoming a small time card dealer for my second job. While I still collect for me, I also am concerned with turning a profit on cards now, as it helps to support my lovely wife and I. The fact of the matter is, this site is not at the moment the thriving place it once was. Scott did a great job rebuilding and reworking the site, and I know the new owner will continue to make this site wonderful...but it just doesnt feel like home any more. I have changed my focus, I have changed my priorities, and I have changed the way I "do" cards- and for the most part, that doesnt fit here any more, I have realized.

Today was the final proof to that, as a trader was unhappy because I had not matched a deal card for card, when the understanding was that we would both send small lots to each other to help each other's collections. And I realized something- I would rather do this hobby and this business elsewhere now- not because SCF isnt a great place- but because it isnt my place any more.

Thank you!
Thank you to all of the traders who I made awesome deals with! Thank you to those who made deals with me that didnt go so well, you helped me learn more about this hobby and about how to make deals online. Thanks to everyone who bought from me- I hope I gave you good deals on cards that you liked! Thanks to all who sold to me- I loved the cards- all of them!
Thanks to Mike, Tony, George, Scott, Don, Ed, Chris, and all of the hundreds of other men and women I interacted with in a positive way. I cherish the friendships and memories far more than any cardboard.

Peace out SCF- you were and always will be, my sports card home!

Thanks for reading, and best of luck to all of you and all of your collections in the future! Find me on Facebook, find me at a NE Ohio show- or drop me a line just to say hi!

With lots of love and respect
Palantri (Ed Hutchinson)

Of course we lose a big time members, right when I take over. Just my luck. :p

Ed, what things have changed for you that made you lose interest? Just different members when you first signed up all those years ago, the look and feel of the site? What were the biggest factors for you leaving the site? I hope you have time to come back on and help me answer some of these questions.

[doniceage]

Ed,

Best of luck in your business and change in your priorities.

Don

[BlackDiam0nd66]

I have dealt with you many times Ed, and you were always a pleasure!

I also left the site for a long while, however, it was due to personal stuff and I had to put my collecting on hold for a number of years. I wish you all the best in whatever you do and I hope you will pop in again sometime down the road!

All my best!

Of course we lose a big time members, right when I take over. Just my luck. :p

Ed, what things have changed for you that made you lose interest? Just different members when you first signed up all those years ago, the look and feel of the site? What were the biggest factors for you leaving the site? I hope you have time to come back on and help me answer some of these questions.

Welcome and congratulations on becoming the new SCF Owner! I wish you nothing but success!

[madduxfan31]

I'm sorry to hear you are leaving. Best of luck in your new ventures. This place was quite the thriving community years ago. For some reason or another a lot of early scf trading pioneers have moved on making the community a little smaller each time. Ed you will be missed.