I should have mentioned that I had just finished a 2100 km bike "trip" through outback Australia and was bringing my bicycle and "things" back to Canada via LAX and MSP. I HAD TO check them in -no other option. Oh, I was about 50 pounds overtweight as well..

Never again will I fly thru the USA - next time through Hong Kong, Singapore or anywhere other than LAX, SFO or Hawaii..

Yes, I have, although it also has to do with the entire flying experience (of which the TSA is just one truly obnoxious part). If it's a drive less than 10 hours, I will usually drive it. With flight delays and having to be at the airport two hours early, it's a wash anyway. Plus I can listen to music or audiobooks the whole time, stop for food or a restroom whenever I want to, and bring any state of matter (even liquids and gels!) and in any amount that I desire. I don't have to take off shoes/articles of clothing, get barked at by rude power tripping high school dropouts, or have my personal belongings rifled through prior to getting in my car. And I can travel on my own schedule, not the airline's schedule.

If these new asinine security regulations for international flights (being in seat for last hour of flight, and not being allowed to have any personal belongings including reading material for last hour of flight) are extended to domestic flights, I will not be traveling at all to destinations that cannot be reached by car or train. For me, part of the fun of a vacation is the journey, and if the TSA (and airlines) insist on making the journey more unpleasant than it already is, I will simply vacation closer to home. There's plenty of fun stuff and beauty right here in Colorado. I refuse to spend perfectly good money on a flight if it's going to be miserable.

I find this thread rather ironic when there are mileage wh**s, err, mileage runners who would rather do nothing else other than sitting on an airplane for 24+ hours straight for absolutely no reason other than sitting on airplanes. And the ones here who go somewhere for a reason avoid flying.

Ahh, I just canceled a trip, take a look at my earlier post.

This year I drove to DFW, AUS, DEN, DSM, and OMA -- cities that I used to fly to nearly 100% of the time.

If we had better Amtrak service, I would take the train even longer distances.

And, in case you think I am some type of exception, read this:

Since 2000, the number of people flying over the Thanksgiving holiday has dropped a whopping 62 percent. During that time, airlines have struggled financially and responded by tacking on more fees and reducing the number of flights. Meanwhile, passengers typically have to wait longer in security lines and encounter more delayed flights.

http://www.petergreenberg.com/2009/1...for-americans/

62% decrease while the population has increased. People are not flying unless they have to or have a strong reason to do so. And, with the latest insanity, airline travel will continue to decrease!

I just thought I'd come back here to say that my wife and I have decided to cancel our upcoming trip to Guam (a US territory) and go to Okinawa (Japan) instead. As we live in Japan, this will be a domestic flight for us, far easier than traveling internationally, and the best part is that there will be no TSA lunacy!

How have the rest of you altered your travel patterns to minimize your interaction with the TSA?[/QUOTE]

I totally avoid ATL, even if it means driving. The female TSO who groped me in Atlanta appeared to be in need of a shower. Her 'superior' who watched with a smirk on his face during the assault, reminded me of somebody's Uncle Pervy. A really nasty experience.

On Friday, I was flying SFO-SEA on VX. When I got to the security checkpoint, I saw that they were forcing everyone into the stripsearch machine, or else subjecting them to a search (which I assume was the "intimate patdown" that I got the last time I refused to go through it). I called UA, and bought a ticket on their flight (for $100 more), then canceled my VX flight, and took the train over to UA (no stripsearch machine at T3).

I also sent the story to VX.

Not a TSA story (since there's no TSA at SFO), but same thing.

A World Of Difference!
 

Just came back from Singapore and what a difference compared to the US!!! :D When approaching immigration at Changi you hear Classical music in the background and a basket full of candy awaits you on the desk of the passport official. A 30 second I.D. check followed by a smile and a sincere welcome. The comparison to the U.S. would be the same to compare Heaven to Hell.

stopped flying. car and train have been working pretty good.

The 500 Mile Rule
 

I have been traveling extensively since the early 80's. I used to have a 400 mile rule: if it was 400 miles or less, it was generally easier to drive. Now it is 500 miles. One exception: north in winter to avoid snow I will reluctantly fly 200-400 miles.

In days gone by, I'd take the cheapest most convenient transportation. Convenience being defined as portal to portal time en route, parking issues, etc. Expense being defined as cost of travel, including parking, gas to/from airports, anything bought while in transit such as drinks on the other side of the TSA/Berlin Wall.

Now, weighting is doubled for convenience and time en route. I rarely fly commercially any more unless the time savings is substantial. I needed to make a trip from BRD-MCI. total time en route was 13 hours. I can drive it in 9. I can rent/fly a GA piston airplane in 3.5 hours, and come and go when I please. The layover at ORD was longer than that. Rental cars are becoming the norm. Where AMTRAK goes, I go. I haven't yet dropped to Greyhound, though.

So, yes, 3 hours advanced arrival, shoes-on shoes-off, dump the water, paint the fence, wax-on wax-off, layers of annoyance, and I've flown 300 hours last year on business, 3 hours in scheduled airlines. 4 years ago this was about the opposite.

For international flights, I've found that Air Canada offers some pretty good deals to Europe and Asia if you can find flights that do not stop in US airports. I started doing this when the USD/CAD was much higher. Now, even at parity, it's worth the drive to Toronto or Montreal. Driving across the border is a snap compared to the ever changing TSA goat rope.

Yes.
We've given up travelling to the US entirely.
Given the latest nonsense, we cancelled our annual trip YYV-EYW in the spring. We're going to Nassau instead. Up until now, we've been taking 5-6 trips to the US every year. Now, we'll take 2-3 and go to Europe and the Caribbean.
TSA and its branch-plant Canadian counterpart, CATSA, have gotten too stupid to deal with.
Granted, we still have to endure CATSA when going to non-US destinations, but the rules aren't nearly as arbitrary and silly.
We can bring carry-ones to Nassau, not Key West, for example.
As well, we're not submitting our two teenage daughters to full-body gropes by those apes at security.
We'll be back when TSA and the US Gov't snaps to their senses and starts looking for real security threats.
No, I don't expect to be back anytime soon.

Unless the company forces me to, I drive on any field work requiring travel under 500 miles.