andymo99

You might recall from last month that the inaugural DL Forum Flyertalker of the Month award was given to Rssrsvp. As we all agreed, Rssrsvp was a deserving recipient. He is a longstanding member of the community who has contributed his great wisdom for several years. Rssrsvp has established an enviable reputation at the DL Forum, and finding a deserving February recipient to carry on that legacy presented me with a challenging task.

I am confident that the February honoree, with a markedly different background, is equally deserving. It is with great pleasure that I announce the February winner. For February, I wish to honor The Delta Flyertalk Rookie. Just as Time often honors objects (The Computer, Endangered Earth) or classes of people (The Middle Americans, American Women, The Whistleblowers), this month we pay tribute to the large and vociferous group of flyers who have joined us recently. Some had lurked for months or years, while others only discovered us amid the sweeping Medallion changes announced in late 2002. All became strong and meaningful contributors.

The emergence of the newcomer to our community has been well documented.
RobertS975 noted that there are “Lots of New Voices on the Delta Board!”
Gannet made a similar observation in a thread called “Spread the Word.”
kathnunley took a role call of new posters in “Who here is "new to FT" due to the DL changes?”

While the February award is given to the entire class of new arrivals, I have also chosen to honor one rookie who personifies the spirit of the class. After all, there needs to be a recipient of the traditional broken luggage tag which comes with the DL Forum FlyerTalker of the Month award. Therefore, the official recipient for the month of February is: NYBanker

After careful consideration, it is apparent that NYBanker is a deserving recipient for such a rich array of reasons. NYBanker is a GM (GMs are 2-for-2 in claiming this prestigious award) with about 125 posts since he registered at FT earlier this year. A careful review of his postings reveals a consistent record of thoughtfulness, cogency of argument, thoroughness, and excellent insight into the nooks and crannies of Delta and the Skymiles program. To wit:

An excellent analysis of the CRC/Platinum Amex including some novel insights into the pros and cons of various forms of membership. In the same thread, NYBanker relates an interesting vignette concerning de-boarding airplanes pre-departure. We have grown to expect such interesting anecdotes from NYBanker, whose extensive business travel has enabled him to gather some unusual experiences.

While NYBanker tends to be a net replier to threads, he has started some threads that were very interesting and spurred fascinating discussion. For example, NYBanker started a thread concerning lost IDs.

This thread is representative of NYBanker’s deep understanding of Skymiles, and illustrates his helpfulness as he advises a peer on award redemption. We saw similar expertise in his explanation of upgrade waitlist procedures.

In this thread, NYBanker provides a detailed review of the DL Amex card.

Here, NYBanker helps another FTer weed through the deep, complicated details of the NAMU rules. Not only does he provide an informed answer, but he throws in another of those characteristic NYBanker anecdotes that really highlights both his extensive travel experience and his commitment to the FT community.

Here, NYBanker analyzes the short CVG-LEX flight with interesting insights (and a reference to arbitrage!), while again sharing a little story from his personal experience.

NYBanker can also be the nostalgia type. Here he inquires about the history of DL’s 747s.

In typical NYBanker fashion, our financial friend succinctly answers a query here concerning AF awards.

Here, our award winner explains and analyzes the varying F configurations of the domestic and Latin American fleet.

In this thread, NYBanker answers a question about the effect of changing elite levels on upgrade procedures while simultaneously offering sage advice for future level changes.


For all of these reasons and more, I congratulate NYBanker on flying away with the February award, as the embodiment of all that is right about our rookies.


This month, we again have an honorable mention. Our runner-up for February is none other than our resident wordsmith and entertainer, Canarsie.

Granted, it was not quite February when Canarsie coined the phrase “evisceration proclamation.” And the polls that Canarsie started (Poll 1, Poll 2, and Poll 3) were all pre-February. Regardless it is evident that Canarsie has been a worthy Rookie. Canarsie has made great contributions, such as bringing to our attention a great bonus offer. He also taught us how to enlist in promotions that initially reject us. But his real strength lies in keeping us entertained. Who could forget Canarsie’s Flintstones word play or his risqué masturbatory humor? I know we all enjoyed the ample breast puns that Canarsie shared as well. And of course, Canarsie has regaled us with outstanding song lyrics. First was the Delta Dawn parody, followed by the great Jim Croce send-up. Finally, Canarsie gave us a song about the Year of the Rat. which mysteriously served as his swan song. Perhaps, it seemed, Canarsie left us as quickly as he came. But no, on page two of the same thread Canarsie engages in further word play and announces that he is here to stay! Regardless of the future, thanks for great contributions throughout February, Canarsie.


List of DL Forum FlyerTalker of the Month Award Winners:
January, 2003: Rssrsvp
February, 2003: NYBanker (“The DL FT Rookie”)


[This message has been edited by andymo99 (edited 02-28-2003).]

RSSrsvp

Andy, many thanks for choosing a worthy successor. You are absolutely correct and the honor is well deserved.

NY Banker, keep up the good work, you inspire us all.

akhullar

Third the motion

yknot

Congratulations NYBanker for a well deserved selection.

paradocs

Andy, that was outstanding! Great thoughts and terrific research!

NYBanker and Canarsie: you deserve it. We are a better community due to your presence.

Welcome to all the newbies who have joined us!

FrequencyFlyer

Andy I concur, but add that you have entirely too much free time.

obscure2k

Great choices, and to you, Andy, thanks for a job well done.
--NYBanker & Canarsie --congratulations! You both truly enrich the DL Board and FT community.

andymo99

If only!

[This message has been edited by andymo99 (edited 02-28-2003).]

NYBanker

Wow. Thank you for this generous award. I'm glad my generally useless information (kinder people might refer to it as "targeted information") can be helpful to other members.

I enjoy finding arbitrage opportunities within the rules. A lot of my (paying) work involves coming up with creative solutions within arbitrary rules.

(Somehow I originally missed this topic. I think this part of the site may have had intermittent service around when this was posted.)

Thanks again!

RSSrsvp

The burning question of the day is who will be named songwriter of the month for the DL board. Will it be Canarsie or yknot?

IMHO, this race is too close to call.

yknot

I vote for Canarsie - "Year of the Rat" cannot be beat.

Canarsie

First, I would like to congratulate NYBanker, who truly deserves the honor of FlyerTalker of the Month.

In addition, I would like to give my thanks for the honorable mention. I really am flattered and feel honored - and rather surprised, too! This totally caught me off guard!

andymo99, I cannot believe the research you have done. Does your work here preclude you from nominating yourself for next month?

Personally, I can think of many others on the Delta forum whom I believe deserve honorable mention more than I do. If there is a positive side to the changes in policies initiated by Delta Air Lines, it is that they caused me to state my opinions here and thus be introduced to an incomparable, outstanding group of intelligent people with a broad sense of humor.

Thank you again for the honorable mention! I truly appreciate it!

Canarsie

Thank you, yknot - although from what I see of your contributions, you must be quite modest yourself because I would have voted for you, especially with your latest parody. I had John Lennon singing your parody in my head after reading it and I could not get it out of my head for a while.

You know it ain't easy.