Randy,

Just adding my thanks to all the others - FT made a huge difference to my life for several years of intensive travelling, starting with your "accidental giveaway" of, in effect, Concorde trips for magazine subscriptions which caused me and many others to take a huge leap of faith and pay you several thousand dollars. Thankfully this faith was repaid many times over and we continue to reap the benefits of the community you created. Clearly FT is now THE go to place for anything to do with flying and miles; let's hope that it continues to fluorish in your absence.

Best wishes for your future endeavours.

Thanks Randy! I've never dared to join in any FT activities, but I feel I have sensed the extraordinary spirit of the active members here. That spirit must have developed through a strong willed founder. I sense it is a spirit of morale, righteousness, mutual respect and of the unshamed right to enjoy everything good that life has to offer.

I don't know of any other board like this.

I'm so glad I have been around during even these five+ years. Whatever will happen to this board can not take that away, nor can it take away all those (premium) travel related experiences that I have been able to enjoy during these years. Funny reading one board can have given so much! And given, not only by reading and experiencing, but by contributing as well.

I don't see how anyone could actually leave Flyertalk, but I understand your managerial role will "fade away". Hopefully those in your spirit will be able to keep FT together. If some of the most active organizers will continue, then I still think we have nothing to worry about!

Thank you, Randy, for creating this forum that has had such a major impact on my life. I've never seen such a sense of community anywhere else. You should feel very proud that you have enriched so many lives all over the world.

Bobette

Truly Sorry
 

Very sorry to read that you are leaving

It would be a crushing blow if IB screws with

this tremendous creation of yours & I'm puzzled

why they couldn't have made an offer to stay

that you just couldn't refuse to take

It seems ominous for the future of F/T

I am grateful for all I've learned & also

for all the fun I've had here & hope for

little if any change to be made by them

All the best in whatever you do

Thank you for everything!

Randy:

I came late to FT, but it's already clear to me just how much of an impact you have had on the flier community, thanks for your contribution. ^

Jeez, stay away from the Board for a week, and look what happens.

Seriously, though -- thanks for everything. From FlyerTalk when it started (with Rudi posting tips and PremEx and Catman talking up United), to the Party in Paradise, until today, what you started has touched lives and helped them (particularly mine).

I certainly hope you'll continue to participate, because you are not just a good person, but also a very knowledgeable and helpful one. I certainly have benefited from knowing you.

Randy, you have in one form or another had an impact and changed the lives of everyone here on FT.

Randy Petersen = FT and that will never change!!!
I personally wish to thank you for everything you have done for us.

I discovered FT at the time of the famous (or rather infamous) Latinpass Million Mile challenge. I hung around on and off over the last 10 years, but always enjoyed the wisdom and banter of FT. Thanks Randy for creating this community.
BBA

Dear Randy,

I join the hoards of my fellow FTers who are sorry to see you step back from your daily responsibilities, but who also are so happy and thrilled to see you move on to the next adventure! Your leadership of FlyerTalk has created a very unique online experience that fuses love of travel, miles, and points, with a genuine concern for community and the well-being of fellow travelers.

You have nurtured this community for over a decade and have brought in members from all walks of life--from teenagers just starting their life of travels to retirees making the most of their golden years. I remember joining FlyerTalk during my first year as an undergraduate at a liberal arts college in rural Iowa, dreaming of the lifestyle of travel that I enjoy today. I owe all of my opportunities for travel to you and my friends on FT.

Randy, what I find most innovative about FlyerTalk is that it harnesses the power of the web to bring together, in a virtual way, so many thousands of people from all over the world into a single forum. The very nature of our passion for travel places us FTers physically all over the globe, but you have created a welcoming "home" for us on FT to which we can return, whether we are at home or in Miami or Los Angeles or New Delhi or Toyko and beyond!

In conclusion, thank you for your visionary leadership and for giving so generously and selflessly of your time and energy to build this community. We will miss you greatly and wish you and your family all the best.

Warmest regards,
ESpen36 (proud FTer since 2002)

Thank you, Randy!

Though we've never met in person, our paths have crossed somewhere before and we never even knew it.

I'm honoured to be part of something of a legacy that you started.

I just found out about this (thanks, gleff for making this known). Thanks for everything, Randy. This place just won't be the same without your guidance, but I think you've created a community that will sustain itself. This site was way ahead of its time and, despite the vast changes in social media that have occurred in the nearly 10 years I've been a member here, remains relevant and vital. Whatever you choose to do moving forward, I wish you nothing but the best.

Many many many thanks and best wishes!

-Chris

Randy,

Thanks a lot for creating this wonderful forum. FT has impacted (for the better) my life significantly. We'll miss you!!

Hopefully you'll still drop by from time to time :).

Will add you on FB.

Thanks again.

Piyush

Randy,

My sincerest thanks for all your hard work and dedication to this wonderful community you spawned 12 years ago. As a Volunteer Moderator I also got the chance to see all the hard work you put in behind the scenes. :-:^
My life changed when joining 4 years ago. I had flown frequently for 25 years before joining. With FlyerTalk, it all made sense and coach became an anomaly.:D

Best wishes and good luck in your future endeavours.


/Petrus