Ahhhh, now I've got it. Thanks for the tips. It all makes sense to me now.
Mr CanuckFlyer was looking over my shoulder when I finally fit all the pieces together. I said, "Pretty cool! ATL-IAD-JFK-SFO-LAX-SFO-JFK-IAD-ATL, all for $172.50!"
He asked "Why on earth would you want to do that."
My reply: "Status baby. Status."