I am back home after a great time in Reno and Carson City. Just wanted to say thanks to all the ladies and to the Mongers that made the trip. I had a great time and made many memories. I really recommend those who have never attended a LPIN Gathering event to make the effort!!
The only down side was having to deal with American Airlines. As a few can attest (Little Richard and Cobia and others unknown to me), AA was a real pain in the ass, They are definitely on my list of NOT to do again. Maintenance delays/cancelations on four consecutive legs on 5 aircraft (yep they replaced one and the replacement had issues!) Took 28 hours to get home!!!
To expand a little on what Ovr Da Hill said, “The Winterfest Express” turned out to be the flight from hell. That is my nickname for American Airlines service between Reno and Dallas. Last winter three of us ended on the same plane heading to Reno. This year on the way home I was scheduled on the 7:15 am departure to Dallas and Ovr Da Hill was on the same plane.
At around 6:30 they announced that they had a mechanical problem and the departure would be delayed to 7:30. Then a little later they delayed the departure to 8:00. As 8:00 approached, they announced that they had to fly in a part from San Francisco and it would be a very long delay. The pilot even got on the gate microphone and talked to us and said during the night the maintenance center had found a bleed air leak in one engine. He said we were better off sitting in the terminal because it could be very bad trying to fly out of Reno in that condition. He said he didn't know why they waited until the morning to try to fix it.
The gate agent then announced that they were going to try to rebook people and we had to all go back down to the carousel to get our luggage in order to rebook. So I got my luggage and stood in a long line at the counter. When I got there, they rebooked me on Delta through Salt Lake City to New Orleans, arriving at 9 pm, and gave me a ticket. When I went to Delta, they did not have the reservation and said the flight to New Orleans was full. So then it was back to AA and stood in another long line to get back to the counter. When I finally got to the counter, the lady realized her mistake and said all they could do is to put me back on the original flight which was scheduled to depart at 2 pm and I would arrive in New Orleans at 11 pm.
It was now about 10 am so I hung around the airport, ate lunch, and then made my way back to the gate still unsure if they would get the parts and be able to leave in order for me to get home that night. But luckily they got the parts, tested the engine, and it was declared OK to fly. So after a long day in the Reno airport, I finally got to New Orleans at 11 pm and then got home shortly after 12:30 am. I saw Ovr Da Hill in Dallas and he was going to have to spend the night there before heading home the next day. I enjoyed my weekend in Reno seeing old friends, having some great parties, and meeting some exciting new ladies but now you can see why I said “The Winterfest Express” was the flight from hell.
