Earn Your Wings (EYW) 2019
Oct 18, 2019, 5:02 am
#376
Join Date: Feb 2018
Programs: Marriott Bonvoy Platinum Elite & Aeroplan 50K
Posts: 1,722
I went to register for EYW because my status just updated this morning...
Someone has already used my codfather name, I guess I should have trademarked it. I will have to be faster next year! For anybody looking for my name, it is ***therealcodfather***.
Someone has already used my codfather name, I guess I should have trademarked it. I will have to be faster next year! For anybody looking for my name, it is ***therealcodfather***.
Oct 18, 2019, 7:19 pm
#377
Join Date: Sep 2013
Location: YYC
Programs: AC SE MM, IHG Diamond, National Exec Elite
Posts: 394
Has anyone else been ignored by the EYW email? I had some early flights that did not post. They finally got back to me on Oct 1 saying they would post in a couple of days. Several days later, 2 of the 3 (all n the same PNR) posted. I sent another email on Oct 6 - no reply. Sent another email asking for an update on Oct 14 - no reply. Not very professional!
Oct 18, 2019, 7:54 pm
#378
Join Date: Oct 2008
Location: YYC, LAX/SMO
Programs: AC S100K, HH Silver
Posts: 91
Keep it classy, competitors
On Wednesday and Thursday this week I did full days of flying around and encountered three distinct groups of Air Canada (or AC Express) staff: those that had no idea about the EYW competition, those that had heard of EYW or met people doing EYW flights and those who knew about EYW and had bad experiences with competitors. Now granted, my two days (so far) only exposed me to a small sample set but there were three employees (out of perhaps 40 that I interacted with at more than a greeting level) who said that they had bad experiences with competitors. And in one case, there was a GA who told my friend and I that a "group of them were intoxicated and obnoxious" (their words not mine). I'm sure most of us are competing/travelling in a reasonable manner and demeanour but for those who are not I say: keep it classy, everyone (gender specific language no longer allowed, right?).
Oh, and there was actually a forth group (perhaps sub-group) which warrants mentioning: at least 50% of those who knew about the competition had interacted with the infamous GRANDBEND.
Oh, and there was actually a forth group (perhaps sub-group) which warrants mentioning: at least 50% of those who knew about the competition had interacted with the infamous GRANDBEND.
Last edited by douglasr; Oct 18, 2019 at 9:29 pm
Oct 18, 2019, 8:55 pm
#380
Join Date: Jun 2018
Location: YVR
Programs: AC SE100K, Bonvoy Platinum Elite, IHG Gold, Hertz 5*
Posts: 2,132
Rule #1 of any contest? Know the damn rules. I assumed the booking window closed at 11:59 tonight. Because Im an idiot.
Oh well. Now I dont have to take a pile of meaningless flights.
Oh well. Now I dont have to take a pile of meaningless flights.
Oct 18, 2019, 9:06 pm
#381
Join Date: Jul 2010
Location: YYC
Programs: AC SE100K, *G, Bonvoy Plat, Hilton Gold, Hertz PC, Avis PC, Enterprise Plat
Posts: 671
Lol if it makes you feel any better I also thought the same until I read this. I totally blew it. I was going to book a MR to chase SE that would have netted me a bunch of wings but I procrastinated. Still need to make the SE run but I just lost out on the wings.
Oct 18, 2019, 9:31 pm
#382
Join Date: May 2013
Location: YYT/YYC/TPE
Programs: AC SE, UA, National Exec Elite, Nexus, GE
Posts: 1,810
At T-2h mark, I calculated the number of miles I would be getting from the itineraries, darn, short of my target by a couple thousand miles. At this point, I determined that the priority is to meet my target for the AQM threshold, not wings.
At T-90m, I researched a brand new itinerary. Gotta make the destinations a bit interesting. Calculated the total AQM from the itineraries. Short by a couple hundred.
At T-85m, I had sacrificed a super destination in order to maximize my AQM. I may or may not get the $250 AMEX gift card, but I will get another year of SE status, assuming everything works out as planned. Clearing the threshold on a razor thin margin, while visiting a few places I had not visited before.
T-70m, called in and booked. The last itinerary booked 30 minutes before cutoff. My thinking is that these itineraries are placeholders. I can still switch up the flights if I wanted to within 24 hours and the PNR remains valid (and no change fee).
Now here is the sinister part: I can decide to cancel my itineraries and get refunded if I am already eliminated from the $250 AMEX card race, if I see an opportunity for a lower CPM, since these itineraries are above my average CPM. My flights are later in the contest so I can wait to see what happens.
Oct 18, 2019, 10:09 pm
#383
Join Date: Jul 2008
Location: yyz
Programs: status-free
Posts: 565
You can tell there's a smaller set of useful routings this year, because I'm bumping into more participants than in the past (and that's before the cattle herd really gets going!). Happy connections to all!
Oct 19, 2019, 9:34 am
#384
Join Date: Sep 2011
Location: YVR
Posts: 38
I am still trying to figure out how you knew to ask if I was doing EYW. Regardless, it was nice to meet you briefly. I believe I sat next to the infamous Grandbend yesterday, but I can't be sure!
Oct 19, 2019, 4:29 pm
#385
Join Date: Jan 2018
Location: Windsor/Detroit
Programs: AC*SE, Wyndham Dimond, Marriott Plat, Amex Plat CND & USA, active military, Yoga teacher.
Posts: 148
I think I won this contest. not on the number of wings I will end up with, but with the experience I have gotten. i flew from my parents house by YYZ-YEG over night in the airport YEG-YYC-YVR-PDX-YVR. I checked 3 bags in, one was a case of water, one was a suit case of cloths and food, and the last one was 2 rims and my sleeping bag. When I got to YVR to grab my bags for the first time my case of water was destroyed made a mess in the bag area, my cloths are in PDX and my rims are in YEG. I turn my bag of cloths in 2 bags and check them from YYC-YVR flight in 3 hours, but in that time I am going to YYC-YEG-YYC. they send my bags to YEG. they lost 5 of my bags in 3 days. The concierge team sick of finding my bags and sending them to airports I was at, made arrangements for me to store my bag for free at YYC and just go down and grab clean cloths from them. I am useing up a flight pass I got on sale 10 months ago my route is YVR-PDX-YYC-YEG-YYC-YVR for 5 of my days. My plan was to be able to check my bags in YVR in the morning and recheck them at PDX to YYC-YVR, skip the YYC-YEG leg, but with them storing my bags for free i saved me all that work and saved them from losing my bags more times. I missed connected one day and was unable to meet up with my friend in LAX to give him the rims. I go to YYC to get my bags as I am done in YYC and my 10 days of flying is coming to an end, and I have been flaged by AC for my itineraries and a security threat. 45 min later after they start the investigation, I get a call from corporate security, Sir you are doing earn your wings and we want to wish you the best of luck, your itineraries looked suspicions, and now you will have to check all your bags in like a normal person sorry for all this. I am happy with this now as i will have my bag every night and every time they lose my bag I have 350$ to spend from air canada. I will end up in top 30 with using up my flight pass i got for a great deal.
Oct 19, 2019, 9:02 pm
#388
Join Date: Jul 2008
Location: yyz
Programs: status-free
Posts: 565
I think I briefly intersected with LesDorgo... assuming he was keeping his stuff in YYC behind the Amex free-whiskey-and-shoeshine stand.
Oct 19, 2019, 9:29 pm
#389
Join Date: Jan 2018
Location: Windsor/Detroit
Programs: AC*SE, Wyndham Dimond, Marriott Plat, Amex Plat CND & USA, active military, Yoga teacher.
Posts: 148
I left my bag at the amex desk once in yyc and the staff told me they would watch it at the front desk wile I went out and changed. The staff at the lounge treat me like a lost child and they are my mom. I loved the mom treatment.