Archive for the 'Travel' Category

Constraints: 10 days
Pros: have Starwood and Marriott points
Current leaders:

1. Kayaking Options: Loreto, Mexico; Vancouver Island, Victoria, Canada; Lake Powell, NV; Pictured Rocks National Lakeshore, Munising, MI
2. Golf: Victoria, Canada
3. Mountaineering/Skiing: Climb Mt. Olympus, WA
4. Surf Camp: Panama or Costa Rica
5. some combination of the above
6. others?

I recently sent in a Tumi T-Tech backpack I used for work. Over time the bag material began to fray which made it look “not-so-professional”. I could live with that but when a zipper broke on one of the main compartments I had to send it in for repair. I took it to Portland Luggage and for $15 they sent it in for me. Portland Luggage didn’t guarantee me Tumi would do anything though and tried to sell me a Briggs and Riley.

I have owned a Briggs and Riley before and liked it, but decided to wait and see what Tumi would do for me. The bag that I sent in costs ~$300. Tumi said that bag was warranted for only 3 years and that time was up. Needless to say I wasn’t happy (but was happy I didn’t pay retail for the bag initially). They didn’t end up doing much – they told me they couldn’t repair the bag (a zipper?! come on!) and offered me a 30% discount on a new bag. I told them I didn’t feel like spending money on a new bag every three years so asked them to simply ship the bag back to me/Portland Luggage. Buyer beware – make sure you know your warranty duration (Briggs and Riley’s is lifetime). Based on Tumi’s and their response to my repair request I will never be buying a piece of their luggage again and will recommend Briggs and Riley instead (that bag worked very well when I owned it).

FYI: Tumi # I called –> 800-322-8864, for repair press 3

Work is pretty busy right now.  Consider the fact that my travels this week will bring me from UT to MI, IL, CT, MA, PA and OR (and WA).  I hope some of those flights have coffee on them   At least I don’t have another country to go to during my travels this week!

Wish I could say that I just got a new one, but this posting isn’t about that. This posting is about the recent pleasant flight I had on a new CRJ-900.. Most planes, especially in terms of cargo space are far from adequate, but in the CRJ-900s one can fit a 24×15x10 (I think the technical max is 20×15x9) travel case in the overheads. Both coach and first class seats are of good quality, especially first. And the loud hum you typically hear when taking off – _very_ minimal (no more drones!). Only beef – no outlets, but hey, it is an RJ. All in all a great aircraft. Did I mention how happy I am that the turbo/props are almost extinct? Let me know if you’d like to ride in my CRJ once I take delivery… goal is to put in the  PO in a few years.

This evening on my way to Hartford, CT I tried out my free trial of Delta’s “GoGo” in the air wireless service.  I had a fair amount of work to do, much of it requiring connectivity – e.g. phone calls, some appointment booking (needed to know people’s availability), and potential catch up via im with colleagues.  I must say that I am impressed for the most part.  My flight was about 2 hrs. so the cost would have been $10, but I had a free coupon.  Connectivity is good (I am in the air now writing this) although my experience using Skype varied.  Land line calls are so so in quality while Skype to Skype calls are much better.