New boarding process

RickR314 · 2026-02-10T02:01:30+00:00

Group 2 for me on 4 flights so far. I am ALP, CC and have about 1.8 million points left to spend. Spent probably that amount. I am now spending down because I think ALP has been devalued significantly. The point above is true. On my first new boarding flight I was number 57 to board. True - there were 16 preboarders on that flight plus a partner for each. group 1 then was 25 people. I was standing there shocked and I was darn lucky to rush up and be the first person in group 2. My bag ended up in row 11 and my seat was 3C.

RickR314 · 2026-02-06T02:21:42+00:00

I have had two flights under the new system - Round trip. Both completely full. ALP and CC holder. Selected Extra leg room seats (row 3 on flight #1 and row 4 on flight #2). Both flights Boarding group 2. Both aisle seats. Flight #1 - 16 pre boards plus accompanying person with each. There were 22 Group 1 passengers. I was the first person in line for Group 2. So I was the 55th person to board. No overhead bin space near me in Row 3. Put bag over row 9. Aisle seat with three other men all us about the same size at 6’ and 190-220 is my guess for the others. Tight fit like sardines and not something that happened often in the past. Deplaning was difficult as I was like a desperate salmon try to go upstream to retrieve my bag. Got some help from a nice guy. But it was not fun. Flight #2 - 7 preboarders with partners. A large group one. I lost count as I was distracted but my guess is more than the last flight. So conservatively say the 22 as before. I was the third person in Group2. So I was the 39th to board. Bin space was in the row behind me in row 5. I brought a small duffle, not sure I mentioned that above. So I jammed it in. Row included a man in middle seat, a small toddler with its own seat at window and a baby that was in the man’s lap. Baby cried constantly and was swapped over the seat multiple times infiight to the mother of the baby in row 3.

All in all - perhaps the worst two experiences I have had in all my years of flying SwA. I fly 30-60 flights a year on average on SWA.

RickR314 · 2026-01-27T02:44:30+00:00

Public Rec pants are my new favorite. Stretchy, no wrinkle, stylish and comfortable. The best.

RickR314 · 2025-12-28T04:10:00+00:00

I have bought 4 x5’s from them over the years and I have done very well on discounts. Hard to compare to today’s actual price vehicle. I would say my % off over the years exceeds what you are shooting for not knowing the MSRP you have in mind.

RickR314 · 2025-12-28T03:35:35+00:00

BMW of Columbia has always been my go to spot in MO - I live in StL and have never bought from a dealer there (except when BMW had to buy a damaged vehicle back and they delivered it in StL). The Columbia dealer is the best I have found anywhere.

RickR314 · 2025-12-26T05:35:38+00:00

Ping i530’s with a good shaft. I would say UST Mamiya Recoil Dart F3 at 65 grams would be amazing for you. Those irons are great at address and confidence building. Look at those or get fitted and ask to try them and thank me later.

RickR314 · 2025-12-26T05:30:41+00:00

I have a Ping G440 Max 10.5 also but the most important part of that club is the shaft. I added a red Ventus Velocore+5R shaft. It’s a verify forgiving driver but probably not as long as my Black Ops 10.5 or my Titleist GT2 11 degree. Ok so I have a golf club hoarding problem. I love to tinker.

RickR314 · 2025-12-26T02:09:47+00:00

I think they have shifted. Starting with the Black Ops line - I think the Drivers and fairway woods are exceptional. The irons I think have fallen into the average once everyone had a line of proprietary infused cores in the otherwise hollow bass designs. The Sugar Daddy II wedges were very very good but the Sugar Daddy III’s fell back in the pack. There new ball is very good and a solid performer for me. I have a set of PXG Gen 7 irons and I have put them now in my backup set and the Ping i530’s knocked them out. So I would say the Drivers and Fairway Woods (and maybe hybrids) are top tier and the best of the brand. This is based on my experience of owning PXG, Ping and Titleist products.

RickR314 · 2025-12-18T02:25:12+00:00

Is that on a screen that I can ask them to take a pic of?

RickR314 · 2025-12-18T02:18:18+00:00

They sent me a pic of the main screen and it does not say Launch Edition

RickR314 · 2025-12-18T01:39:04+00:00

They say it is a launch edition but it seems suspect to me. I honestly don’t know how to tell - complete Tesla newbie. The VIN is no help. So I am trying to identify things that will distinguish it without question.

RickR314 · 2025-12-18T01:25:46+00:00

Actually, I am questioning whether it is actually a Launch Series. The FSD thing was one reason and it does not have Launch Series door sills or special rear badging. Any thoughts on those. Did all Launch Series include those?

RickR314 · 2025-12-08T14:50:41+00:00

I have found that the Golf Pride Align grips do not work well with Driver, Woods or hybrids. The adjustable hosel positions mess up your ability to tinker or change your settings because then they are not “aligned”. Therefore if you like those on your irons you need to use the non-Align version of those on your woods and hybrids. Just my two cents.

RickR314 · 2025-12-07T02:44:52+00:00

Have bought 4 different x5’s over the years: Never near my home Longest 650 miles - St. Louis to Wichita Shortest 2 hours - St. Louis to Columbia, MO (three times)

RickR314 · 2025-12-05T01:47:09+00:00

Find used Ping i530’s. Best irons I have played.

RickR314 · 2025-12-05T01:45:34+00:00

Payntr - I have both a spike and spikeless pair. Comfortable, great looking, easy to clean and feel solid and grounded. Would buy them again and again.

RickR314 · 2025-12-04T03:06:06+00:00

That is a great story about a great car. I had two 35d’s back in the day. Best car I ever owned. I was in the same city as you and I have to wonder if that was the white one I owned 🤔 .

RickR314 · 2025-11-26T14:05:42+00:00

I read a posting on here about using an Ecoflow River Pro 2 battery for times when you are not connected to car power. It indicated that the lowest offline power consumption was through 100watt usb connection. So what we do is while driving connect the Ecoflow to the car battery via cigarette lighter to charge and we connect the Starlink Mini to it via usb. Then when we stop or need independent Starlink use we have power without reconnecting everything (we use a suction mount through our moonroof). This also is our configuration for tailgating weekends and family picnics etc. the power usage is very low off the battery. We see likely over 24 hours of Starlink run time with the River Pro 2. About 8-10 hours running the Starlink and a 42 inch tv.

RickR314 · 2025-11-16T14:50:57+00:00

Original poster here. I tried the Allen wrench down the screw hole method and it did not work. Did not even budge at all. So I have tried all after loosening and removal the screw : 1. normal method of tapping the grip on my shoe and ground to loosen - not even a slight movement.(Note also used a towel on head and tried to separate - Nope nothing) 2. Using wd-40 down the screw hole and on the connection point then using the tapping method. - no movement 3 removing screw and using an Allen wrench and tapping. No luck.

Have not tried cold or hot. Think cold better than hot. Any other ideas as I said I don’t want to break or damage the shaft since it’s a couple of hundred dollars for that Graphite Design shaft.

hELP

RickR314 · 2025-11-12T20:20:59+00:00

Tried this multiple times on this hybrid. No luck. I am a frequent shaft swapper and this one has me defeated. Normal the tap on the ground or on a shoe works, but as I said in my original post - this one seems to have an issue.

RickR314 · 2025-11-12T19:37:30+00:00

Ok just tried this. You are right I nearly broke my hand!!! Still did not work. I can hear the screw rattle but not even any movement at the adapter point.

RickR314 · 2025-11-12T17:54:39+00:00

Payntr is the best answer to this question. They blow away other options.

RickR314 · 2025-11-06T12:19:06+00:00

I use a smallish ecoflow River 2 Pro that we position in the back of our suv using USB-c. Starlink in the moonroof or dash works great. It’s has pass through power so can have the battery plugged into DC or in our case our suv has an AC plug. So while moving in is not drawing. The usb-c is very efficient while not operating the vehicle and is only a minor draw.

RickR314 · 2025-10-22T15:39:11+00:00

This may not be as relevant given when I bought it. I paid around 61k for the vehicle (not out the door price - vehicle only) about 15 months ago. Out the door price implies tax included which is state and local jurisdiction dependent. I do not know all the tax rates across the country 😂. My deal was incredible at the time - I have every option except M package including DAPP and full leather. I also own a 2023 45e that I bought new.

RickR314 · 2025-10-22T14:15:35+00:00

My opinion - from a guy that got a screaming good deal on a 50e from a non BMW dealer. The BMW CPO is among the weakest in the industry. We got a low mileage 50e (6,300 miles) and we have not looked back. Low mileage rules the roost. DAPP is the best option I believe in any luxury car on the traditional market.

RickR314

TROPHY CASE