OK, I’m no bonus virgin and have certainly earned my fair share of big bonuses in my time. But a different sort of “Mileage Run” really caught my eye. Mileage … as in car miles. Maybe it should be referred to as an “Odometer Run,” a “Rental Run,” or even a “Car Hop.”  Over on FlyerTalk.com, member Mrp Alert decided that the best way for him to pump up his miles was to take advantage of some of the ongoing car rental bonus offers being offered. While in the 80s, car rentals were often seen as the way to best the programs with thousands of bonus miles, they have taken a far back seat in recent years with changes such as earning only 50 miles per rental day being somewhat standard. Hardly something that turns my motor over on bonus day. So this member does his math and plots out a course of action, along with a goal: 100,000 Miles in 45 Days Renting Cars.

His challenge to himself: Can I accrue 100,000 miles in 45 days exclusively from renting cars. Why 45 days, you may ask? Well, Northwest Airlines started a promotion on December 10 and my first scheduled National rental was around December 15. Meanwhile, Continental started a promotion set to end January 31. The dates were defined, the challenge of topping up my BMI, Virgin Atlantic, and Continental Frequent Flyer Accounts was set, and I am ready to compete.

I’ll give you the break down of his success as of January 31:

Estimated Total Miles Earned: ~101,596

Estimated Total $$$ Spent: $1,209.53

Cost Per Mile in Cents (CPM): 1.19

Total Rental Days: 74

Total # Cars Rented: 28

Average Rental Length: 2.64 Days

Max Cars Rented At Same Time: 6

Average Cost Per Rental: $16.37

Most expensive cost per mile: 2.98 cents per mile

Least expensive cost per mile: 0.41 cents per mile

Mean cost per mile: 1.17 

OK, now, some of you will probably call the authorities to have this person  sent to the frequent flyer funny farm, but let’s take a look at his smart math. He spent $1,200. But he earned enough miles to be used in the $5-7,000 range for travel tickets. when used internationally in the right class of service. Savings? You do the math. My favorite part? There’s no doubt this guy could help his kids with their math homework and my favorite moment of all this: when he had six rental cars out at a single time. And there are those that say miles aren’t as much fun as they used to be? Well, meet Mrp Alert.

As most frequent flyers know, there’s nothing more valuable … or personal than the type of membership card you have with any given travel loyalty program. Of course we speak of the elite cards with all those precious reminders of rare minerals and metals. But two programs have just recently taken the concept of “you are your card” to new levels. Both Starwood Preferred Guest and InterContinental Hotels Priority Club have new personalized cards which most members have yet to learn about. So let’s learn.

Priority Club:

Customized member card. When you log into priorityclub.com, click on the “Customer Support” tab located about half way down on the right. From there, click on “Member Materials” and finally to “Customize Member Card.” This allows you to replace the card you currently have with a custom card which will allow you to have printed on the back of your Priority Club Card, the membership numbers from any of 52 other loyalty programs, including other hotel programs and “other.” You can have up to 10 programs listed on the back of your membership card pre-printed with your choice of the abbreviation of the program and your membership ID number. I think this is pretty nifty and good use of that space on the back. Leave it up to Priority Club to continue to explore these boundaries, after all they are the hotel program that allows you to redeem their points for hotel stays at other hotels like Marriott or Hilton.

Starwood Preferred Guest:

Now, we know that SPG is one of the best programs for branding and very memorable hotels like the W. Well, they have brought that same attention to the personal touch to their membership cards for their Platinum AND Gold members (Note: not all Gold members are eligible). Referred to as “Design Your Own 2008 SPG Card,” it allows these elite members the opportunity to create their own member card for the first time ever by choosing the choice of 16 different properties that reflect the Starwood experience or for us regular folks, our travel inspirations. Among those you can choose from: St. Regis Aspen, W Maldives, Le Meridien Bora Bora. I don’t know about you but yes, they are on my Bucket List for frequent flyers, especially the W Maldives. If you haven’t seen this yet or forgot or just need a reminder, go here to test out your membership to qualify:

Choose Your Card

Here’s my two faves if I could … (I didn’t re-qualify at the level required)

OR

The Season? Wasn’t that last year when we referred to it as the “Holidays?” Uh, not if you’re a frequent flyer.From Jan. 1 through roughly March is “the season” for frequent flyers when  we find out just how well we did last year with our loyalty choices. I know, many frequent flyers focus on their miles, but it’s the hardware that really counts. Hardware. You know: gold, platinum, silver, bronze, all those lovely metals and jewels, including diamonds. You think they are only a woman’s best friend? Sorry, we frequent flyers have best friends as well.Last week I got my first hotel reward of the season when I got my credentials for re-qualiflying for Priority Club Platinum Elite with the side of “Ambassador” thrown in. Cool you might say? Well, to be frank, I was extremely disappointed in my performance last year. I had a choice to remain top elite in several programs or super elite in one or two and I went for a broad assortment of elites. Why so glum? Well, I just barely missed Royal Ambassador with Priority Club. Hey, it’s not to be ashamed of to be at the Ambassador level, but when others I know invite me over to their room at an Inter-Continental Hotel stay or other and the goal is to raid the mini-bar, well, they are bragging and I have to let them because over in my nicely upgraded room, I’m paying for the mini-bar. There’s really nothing like this elsewhere in a benefit that allows a Royal Ambassador this benefit: Complimenary mini-bar [including the alcohol]. Stay refreshed with as many items as you like, free-of-charge.It’s somewhat an obsession on mine because years ago i screwed up “royally.” I had made Royal Ambassador for a single year and unfortunately it was one of those years in which I had scaled back my travel, I’m thinking right after 9/11 and as a result I did not get to enjoy the “raids” as I had hoped. For whatever reason I had thought I was still a member and did the mini-raid on a stay the following year and upon checkout was faced with a mini-bar bill that easily exceeded my room rate. You could have blown me over with a feather and the only good thing was that I was not traveling with anyone so was only faced with personal rejection and despair, no witnesses (until now)But I’ve been back on the road as best I can to manage my miles and points for the best laid plans of Platinum and beyond and this morning was surprised and relieved to get via email a note from United Mileage Plus that I had been invited into the exclusive Global Services program. I have worked my way up over the years, first as a Gold member, then 1K for several years and now this. With United being the largest carrier out of Colorado Springs and of course Denver, it does help, but I have other loyalties as well. I actually took some notes during a recent trip in which I note my mental condition at the gate when wielding such vast power as the ultimate elite. I’ll post that later on because for just a moment, I truly was a Master of the Universe which is not typically like me as I come from meager roots of 22F, having earned and flown and studied my way toward the front cabin.Anyway, welcome to “The Season” and with more elite cards to come, this is truly my favorite time of the year.

Like most of you, I try to read news items that might have any effect on my business travel. So as I scanned a recent article in USA Today referencing Homeland Security’s test of an anti-missile device on commercial aircraft, it seemed relevant. Well, as it turns out, it was as relevant as the PFC’s that shroud my airfares.

The article pointed out that Homeland Security was spending $29 million to test this device on three American Airlines aircraft. So far, so good as the idea seems reasonable. After all, I remember up close and personal the missile scare at London Heathrow in 2003 (and it’s a pretty unsettling feeling to think someone is pointing at you with something more than their index finger). Good news to know … until I kept reading and something just was not adding up. Later in the same article, Burt Keirstead, director of commercial aircraft protection for BEA Systems (the company awarded the contract) is said to say that the systems could be installed for somewhere between $500,000 and $1 million per plane. OK, my consumer radar starts to perk up after reading that comment. Uh, with 3 test planes, the company itself says the device will cost between $1.5 million and $3 million total (use the same math as me) and yet Homeland is spending $29 million on the contract? I want to know what’s with the roughly 90% margin. Now, another comment in the article mentions that it is unclear how much it would cost to maintain the system. Maybe it’s me, but if I had to replace the entire device more than once at it’s full original cost, it’s not a product I am going to be trusting to keep a heat seeking missile off my butt. So at most, I’m in this test at $6 million. OK, we’re down to an 80% margin. Hey, I value my life as much as the next passenger, but I’m thinking we aren’t even into this test and it’s more about profiteering than security.

Furthermore, he article says “The Defense Department uses laser-jamming technology on its planes, but using the systems on commercial airliners is much more controversial because of concerns about cost and maintenance. “If this is going to break down every other month vs. every fifth year, obviously that’s a big, big difference,” says Jim Tuttle of the Homeland Security Department’s Science and Technology division.” These comments and observation brings me to another round of bright thinking. If the Defense Department already uses the technology, then why the heck shouldn’t we use that? It would seem to me that if it works, and as well, I’d think they have tested it many times to date, then isn’t it better to extend that same proven technology than to start all over because the Homeland Security is a different budget and different part of the Federal Government? Again, if the Defense Department uses the technology, should we not already know the cost and maintenance of the program? Heck, I’ve watched enough of those Top Gun movies to know that that laser-jamming stuff saves the good guys most of the time.

I just don’t know. I began to read the article to stay up on news that could effect my business travel and ended up with another lesson in what seems to be profit margins from Federal contracts, an uneasy feeling that no one seems to know if it works and how well and yes, another reminder that being safe as a traveler is a personal kind of thing.

But all the economics and other technology topics aside, what really made me chuckle was the statement that “officials emphasize that no missiles will be test-fired at the planes…” My final question, do the bad guys know this?

OK, with the title of this post, one might imagine that it’s another drag out of no free seats being available for members of frequent flyer programs. Sorry, not htis time. Rather, it’s a comment about one of the most stupid ideas I’ve read in quite some time - well since three days ago. Reading a report from Australia (The Sydney Morning Herald) that mentions in Britain that health officials have begun slashing premiums for members who go to the gym and watch their weight (good idea) BUT, since Australian legislation prohibits using premiums to discriminate, that Dr. Paul Gross, the Director of the Institure of Health Economics and Technology Assessment in Australia, recommends that bonuses such as gym memberships, vouchers for sports equipment AND FREQUENT FLYER POINTS be given out as incentives. The article mentioned that one in four Australian children and one in two adults were overweight or obese (I’m sure it’s worse here in the U.S.) which means that with a population of just over 20 million (4 million of them children) I might be sitting next to 8 million adults and 1 million children that are overweight or obese and getting the frequent flyer seats I thought I was battling for, not battling the bulge. Now, I’ll leave it to the folks on FlyerTalk.com and their threads concerning the obese passenger, but I’ve got to say, I think it a very, very bad idea to force frequent flyer points upon this part of any population for incentives. You know why? Remember, these points/miles are “carrots” for our loyalty and how do you explain a bag of peanuts to a fellow passenger who earned the miles but did not meet their weight loss goals? Put this up there with the idea of  allowing inflight telephone calls using your cell phone.

Hilton HHonors became a hotel loyalty program in 1987 and for most members, that will not be significant, until they are reminded of it. Over the last few days of 2007, Hilton HHonors surprised quite a few still active members in their program by sending them a commemorative plaque personalized with a reproduction of the members original HHonors membership card. I’m proud to say that I’m still active in that program with over 1.4 million points and here’s my salue to 20 fabulous years of that program.And it is really a true reproduction of my original membership card - I still have it and compared, including the card slogan that they were the official sponsor of the 1988 U.S. Olympic Team. I’ve received many things over the years from various programs, but i can’t think of anything more cool than this.