Ditto, from USAirways CP to MVP Gold, 3 years ago. Have earned it each year since. MP is very generous, which appears to result in a lot of elites, relative to the total customer base. While upgrades on the West Coast are readily available to Gold members, be prepared to pay more for your transcon upgrade seat than you would with some of the bigger network carriers, who offer more capacity. Then, again, maybe that's how it's supposed to work.