Healthy Choice Reminder-Update
Dec 20, 1999, 7:39 am
#16
Join Date: Feb 1999
Location: Boston
Posts: 323
I got 11,000 on the double mile certificate and have another hundred UPCs to send in. I also have a pile of forty cent off coupons waiting for a last minute soup sale.
Dec 20, 1999, 2:28 pm
#17
Join Date: Dec 1999
Location: Davis, California
Posts: 253
If you're giving out an award for the most Healthy Choice miles, I bet I'll win it.
I started off buying cans of soup. Then I discovered the chocolate pudding angle. When I found individual cups of pudding selling for $0.25, I escalated my plans, driving to about 15 Grocery Store Outlet stores in a weekend. I filled up my van with chocolate pudding. After that, I made contact with a local Grocery Store Outlet manager and had him special order me 60 more cases of 144! Are you ready for my totals? 12,150 cups of chocolate pudding bought for $3,140 (all doubled) for a total of 1,215,000 miles!!!
You're probably wondering what I did with all that pudding. That's where my plan really clicked together. I made arrangements with several local food banks to donate all the pudding. To get my UPCs in before the double miles deadline, I even put the food banks to work for me. They pulled off the UPCs as they served the food and kept them for me to send in. I'm planning to write off the entire pudding purchase as a charitable donation, saving me over $800. Thus, after taxes are considered, the 1,215,000 miles cost me about $2,325.
Now that nearly all my miles have posted, I'm tremendously happy. However, I must say there was a lot of hard work and drama involved in this scheme, though (like filling out all those 500-miles certificates!). All along I was somewhat worried that Healthy Choice wouldn't honor the deal. I became doubly worried when they failed to send me the miles on time. When I contacted them, they sent me their form letter, saying they had no record of my order! This seems pretty incredible given that I mailed the package registered and someone on their end signed for the package. Plus, how can you loose a package this big? Thankfully, I made copies of everything, and took photographs just in case. When I sent them proof, they quickly sent me the miles.
For the record, counting the soup and other miscellaneous products I bought and ate, I received 1,253,000 miles from the Healthy Choice promotion. Does pulling off this venture get me into the frequent flyer hall of fame?
Isn't it strange to think that the million-miler sitting next to you in First Class got there solely by buying chocolate pudding?
I started off buying cans of soup. Then I discovered the chocolate pudding angle. When I found individual cups of pudding selling for $0.25, I escalated my plans, driving to about 15 Grocery Store Outlet stores in a weekend. I filled up my van with chocolate pudding. After that, I made contact with a local Grocery Store Outlet manager and had him special order me 60 more cases of 144! Are you ready for my totals? 12,150 cups of chocolate pudding bought for $3,140 (all doubled) for a total of 1,215,000 miles!!!
You're probably wondering what I did with all that pudding. That's where my plan really clicked together. I made arrangements with several local food banks to donate all the pudding. To get my UPCs in before the double miles deadline, I even put the food banks to work for me. They pulled off the UPCs as they served the food and kept them for me to send in. I'm planning to write off the entire pudding purchase as a charitable donation, saving me over $800. Thus, after taxes are considered, the 1,215,000 miles cost me about $2,325.
Now that nearly all my miles have posted, I'm tremendously happy. However, I must say there was a lot of hard work and drama involved in this scheme, though (like filling out all those 500-miles certificates!). All along I was somewhat worried that Healthy Choice wouldn't honor the deal. I became doubly worried when they failed to send me the miles on time. When I contacted them, they sent me their form letter, saying they had no record of my order! This seems pretty incredible given that I mailed the package registered and someone on their end signed for the package. Plus, how can you loose a package this big? Thankfully, I made copies of everything, and took photographs just in case. When I sent them proof, they quickly sent me the miles.
For the record, counting the soup and other miscellaneous products I bought and ate, I received 1,253,000 miles from the Healthy Choice promotion. Does pulling off this venture get me into the frequent flyer hall of fame?
Isn't it strange to think that the million-miler sitting next to you in First Class got there solely by buying chocolate pudding?
Dec 20, 1999, 3:45 pm
#18
Original Poster
Join Date: Apr 1999
Location: Indianapolis
Posts: 190
Let me be the first to stand up and applaud...this has to be the effort of the year. I would suggest that you nominate yourself for the stupidest thing to do for air miles, except for the selfless donation of all of the pudding. Hopefully, Randy sees this and gives you your dues in the next Inside Flyer magazine!!!
Dec 20, 1999, 4:05 pm
#19
Original Member
Join Date: May 1998
Location: Canada
Programs: AC SE 2MM, HH Dd, SPG; IC Pl/A; AA; DL
Posts: 14,321
Let's hear it for the pudding guy! Hip hip hooray. Hip hip hooray. This is equivalent to the Oneworld multi 100K runs that are going on right now but even MORE HUGE (if that is possible).
I think this will get written up in Time magazine. Who's going to alert them. Catman--you have media contacts, sounds like a wire story to me.
Dec 20, 1999, 4:07 pm
#20
Original Member
Join Date: May 1998
Location: Canada
Programs: AC SE 2MM, HH Dd, SPG; IC Pl/A; AA; DL
Posts: 14,321
Now Pudding Guy, I'm hoping you are an Elite flyer in whatever program this went in so you can actually redeem some of these miles.
What are your plans?
What are your plans?
Dec 20, 1999, 4:09 pm
#21
Original Member
Join Date: May 1998
Location: OMNI Award Winner, Recipient: Ol' Goal Personal Sootkase Tag Award. The Very Special Punki Authentic PiP Sootkase Tag, Pin, & T-Shirt. .........PRE-
Posts: 3,110
arturo lik to nomineight pudin hed for omni award of awl tim. arturo nevr git hes omni, sew arturo themk pudin hed git hes omni for won mellon mils.
Dec 20, 1999, 4:11 pm
#22
Original Member
Join Date: May 1998
Location: NEWYORK, NY U.S.A.
Posts: 312
Jeezeeeee!!!!
I thought I was mileage crazy. But the chocolate pudding "charity effort" has be the all time "mileage gathering scheme". Congratulations on your efforts!!!!!
P.S.
My wife would have had me locked up in Bellevue if I even told her about me wantng to try such a stunt. Much less even trying to attempt it.
By way I have sent in requests thus far for a measly 10,000 miles thru Healthy Choice.
Mike
[This message has been edited by MIKE MAHONEY (edited 12-20-1999).]
I thought I was mileage crazy. But the chocolate pudding "charity effort" has be the all time "mileage gathering scheme". Congratulations on your efforts!!!!!
P.S.
My wife would have had me locked up in Bellevue if I even told her about me wantng to try such a stunt. Much less even trying to attempt it.
By way I have sent in requests thus far for a measly 10,000 miles thru Healthy Choice.
Mike
[This message has been edited by MIKE MAHONEY (edited 12-20-1999).]
Dec 20, 1999, 4:24 pm
#23
Original Member
Join Date: May 1998
Location: Canada
Programs: AC SE 2MM, HH Dd, SPG; IC Pl/A; AA; DL
Posts: 14,321
10 round trips in First Class to Australia (almost). I thought I did well with $1000US on an Air Canada promo to earn 2 and a half business class tickets from North America to South Africa. This beats that.
I'd also like to know how much time it took to fill out the 1215 forms (or did you just run copies?).
I'd also like to know how much time it took to fill out the 1215 forms (or did you just run copies?).
Dec 20, 1999, 4:25 pm
#24
Original Member
Join Date: May 1998
Location: Pasadena, CA. USA
Posts: 1,438
Very very impressive for your first post Pudding Guy. What are you going to do as a follow up? 
I hope you are real because I just sent Jane Costello at Wall Street Journal this tidbit of info!
I hope you are real because I just sent Jane Costello at Wall Street Journal this tidbit of info!
Dec 20, 1999, 4:26 pm
#25
Original Member
Join Date: May 1998
Location: Canada
Programs: AC SE 2MM, HH Dd, SPG; IC Pl/A; AA; DL
Posts: 14,321
Maybe Healthy Choice has suspended pudding shipments. Anyone else out there ready to buy pudding for a year end mileage run (no status but lots of miles)?
Dec 20, 1999, 4:48 pm
#26
Commander Catcop
Join Date: May 1998
Posts: 10,259
My total Healthy Choice miles earned: ZERO.
I too would vote this the best non-frequent travel program offer of the year.
But isn't eating too much Healthy Choice like, unhealthy???
I hope next year PEPSI does this promotion. I would probably not reached pudding man's totals, even if I only drank PEPSI.
I too would vote this the best non-frequent travel program offer of the year.
But isn't eating too much Healthy Choice like, unhealthy???
I hope next year PEPSI does this promotion. I would probably not reached pudding man's totals, even if I only drank PEPSI.
Dec 20, 1999, 5:06 pm
#27
Join Date: Jan 1999
Location: northern NJ
Posts: 1,352
Yup...
I am down there with Catman. I only got 1000 miles, and that's nothing compared to what am hearing here.
I am down there with Catman. I only got 1000 miles, and that's nothing compared to what am hearing here.
Dec 20, 1999, 5:31 pm
#28
Original Member and FlyerTalk Evangelist
Join Date: May 1998
Location: Kansas City, MO, USA
Programs: DL PM/MM, AA ExPlat, Hyatt Glob, HH Dia, National ECE, Hertz PC
Posts: 16,579
Did AA have an earning limit? Can't you get Millioner Miler status on AA for any miles earned?
That would be the ultimate, earning Million Miler status from this ...
That would be the ultimate, earning Million Miler status from this ...
Dec 20, 1999, 5:38 pm
#29
Join Date: Dec 1999
Location: Davis, California
Posts: 253
As for plans, things have gotten much easier since American changed the rules on expiring miles. Now I can take my time. My first use of pudding miles will be to take my family of four on a trip to Italy and Spain this Easter.
As I implied, I devoted a considerable amount of labor to this project. Tearing the sticky labels off each cup took the most time. I would peel off the labels while watching TV and stick them ten-at-a-time on sheets of paper. I must have come up with several hundred different ways to affix 10 labels to a sheet of paper.
I filled out about 25% of the 500-mile forms by hand. This took several nights. Then I figured out how to print directly on the forms from my printer. I filled out 600,000 worth of miles in a couple hours.
Before pudding, I was a non-elite, very occasionally flyer with dreams of world travel. I claimed miles for Delta, United, and Northwest, but I mostly I got miles for American. American gives lifetime Gold membership for one million lifetime miles-not flight miles. Yes, the miles I got from Healthy Choice put me over 1 million miles.
As I implied, I devoted a considerable amount of labor to this project. Tearing the sticky labels off each cup took the most time. I would peel off the labels while watching TV and stick them ten-at-a-time on sheets of paper. I must have come up with several hundred different ways to affix 10 labels to a sheet of paper.
I filled out about 25% of the 500-mile forms by hand. This took several nights. Then I figured out how to print directly on the forms from my printer. I filled out 600,000 worth of miles in a couple hours.
Before pudding, I was a non-elite, very occasionally flyer with dreams of world travel. I claimed miles for Delta, United, and Northwest, but I mostly I got miles for American. American gives lifetime Gold membership for one million lifetime miles-not flight miles. Yes, the miles I got from Healthy Choice put me over 1 million miles.
Dec 20, 1999, 5:56 pm
#30
Join Date: Jan 1999
Location: Too many
Programs: Lots
Posts: 5,761
This is the craziest thing I've ever heard! Congratulations!