I had a tendency to miss flights, or cut it incredibly close (Back before OLCI, I'd check in 31 min. before my flight)

Since I would fly predominantly BOS-ORD, I'd usually catch the next flight no problem and only get in an 1hr./1.5 hrs. later. (This was pre-Flyertalk - now I do BOS-LGA-DFW-STL-ORD )

Two that standout in my head: Once I decided to fly MHT-ORD as there was a incredible fare sale and it ended up being $91 all-in. My flight left at 6pm on a Friday but due to heavy traffic I ended up at the airport exactly at 6pm. It was the last flight of the day and had to wait till 6am to try to get out on a later flight.

I was stranded in Manchester, as my friend who drove me was on his way to Dartmouth - I had no choice but to rent a hotel so I went to the local Econolodge to get a room. Since I was 19 at the time, they would not rent me a hotel room! The lady felt awful for me but told me of a place that would rent to someone my age. The Queen City Inn. Quite possibly the seediest, dirtiest motel I've ever been to in my life. There were prostitutes on the corner (either that or they liked standing on the corner wearing leather bustiers and thigh-high red boots in 40 degree February weather) $80 for the room, plus $10 for the cab ride to the airport, that cheap ticket was no longer so cheap. Needless to say, I got home at 9am the next day.


Another memorable experience was returning ORD-BOS Sunday after New Years. My mom had dropped me off and I arrived about 30 min. before my flight. Glad that I made it to the airport on time (I had my boarding pass) I wanted to call her to tell her I made it - This is when I realized that I left my cell phone in the car. Now mind you, my cell phone is like a 3rd arm - I can't function without. I rushed to a payphone and called her, and she unwillingly turned around back to drop off my phone. Around this time it's 15 min. before my flight, and I still hadn't cleared security. I run and somehow make it through the shoe carnival in only a few minutes, and I start running for the gate.

Now if any of you have seen the movie Home Alone 2 , I had my Kevin McAllister moment. In the movie the McAllisters' (much like myself) are running late for their flight to MIA and start darting down the ORD AA Terminal and at the Y-fork H/K split run towards the K gates, while Kevin is whose lagging behind mistankenly runs towards the H gates. The McAllisters' end up on the correct flight on the K concourse while Kevin runs into an AA gate agent for a flight on the H concourse and knocks all the ticket stubs shes collecting. As the flight is about to close she tells him to board quickly as the plane is about to depart. He sits down, puts on his headphones and mistakenly boards a flight to LGA.

Now back to my story, I'm running down the corridor and come to the H/K split and start running towards my flight departing at H12. I get to H12 and see that it is a flight to SJU. Granted, I'd much rather be going to SJU then BOS, I check my boarding pass and realize that the flight is departing from K12. As I hear my name being called for a final boarding announcement I miraculously truck it over to K12 and as I'm approaching I see the agent about to close the gate.

"Nooooooooo!!!!!!!!!!" I scream as I run holding my hand out thinking from 20 feet away I can stop the door from closing. She sees me, scans my ticket and lets me on.

So techinically I made the flight but it's definetly one of my more memorable flying experiences Safe to say in the last 2 years I have never missed a flight.


(Apologies in advance for spelling/grammar errors - I'm off to the gym!)