It's no surprise that felt-tip pens sell more briskly than bright purple baseball caps or jerseys at the Baltimore Ravens training camp souvenir shop at Western Maryland College.
If you're seeking the coveted autograph of quarterback Jim Harbaugh, you'll need some patience and some persistence. But most of all, it helps to have a pen that works.
Those pens have been especially busy in recent weeks as a steady crowd of autograph seekers and fans restless for the beginning of the season shows up daily in Westminster. Ravens officials estimate 500 to 1,000 fans visit each day. On weekends, the crowd climbs to 3,000 or more.
After each workout session, fans press against metal barriers and fight for the attention of the dozens of sweaty players shuffling off the field. They call the players by name. They whistle, hoot and holler.
Then, anything large enough to hold a signature might be thrust under a player's nose: seat pads, footballs, photographs, bits of note paper, T-shirts and towels.
Miles Ettinger, 29, leaned over the barrier last week with 5-year-old son Brad atop his shoulders, and asked for their football to be signed. Their efforts secured autographs from defensive tackle Tony Siragusa, linebacker Jamie Sharper and Harbaugh.
Ettinger drove an hour from his home in White Marsh to get a preseason look at Harbaugh's passing skills.
"I wanted to see what he could do," said Ettinger. "His arm impressed me."
The camp is a carnival of sorts. A small trailer does a brisk business in soft drinks, candy and ice cream and a series of obstacle courses and games offer distractions for younger fans.
Boys queue up to kick a football through an inflatable goal post. Toddlers climb through a purple obstacle course of rope ladders and tunnels. Future quarterbacks hurl footballs through hoops.
The spotlight recently has been on Ravens top draft pick Duane Starks, who arrived at camp after a 16-day holdout.
"It's nice to witness it on this scale," said Bob Martindale of Bel Air, who stood 15 feet from the edge of the field. "You are never this close. You get a different perspective and see the way they do things."
Martindale shook his head as he watched the players scrimmaging as the temperature creeped into the high 80s.
"They've got to be dying in those uniforms," he said.
Expecting a boost
