Travel Tips We All Can Use

Hints and ideas to make your vacation more pleasant and make your next business trip less stressful.

We do not reproduce here all the travel advice you can find elsewhere. Links to other web sites with travel tips are provided.

Let's start a fad!  For checked luggage make up stick on labels, at least 3 x 5 inches, with any three digit number in large numerals on it and the words "check name tag also" in small print underneath. (Everyone in the family uses the same number) Plaster two of these on each suitcase. Makes luggage easier to find at the carousel.

Car Rentals
Telephone Ripoffs

Cameras, Film, X-Rays
Walt Disney World Hints

Staying at home? See these topics too.


Major Travel Topics

Don't Let 'Em Take Your Bag, Part 3  (3/02)

Children Seated Many Rows Away  (10/01)
Don't Let 'Em Take Your Bag, Part 2  (10/01)
Baggage Checks and Security  (9/01)
Refunding Unused Return Flight  (9/01)
Unwanted Rental Car Collision CDW Excuses (9/01)
Don't Let 'Em Take Your Bag (7/01)
Not Enough Seats For Kids  (5/01)
Baggage Lost, Late For Appointment  (3/00)
Parent Practice For Kids Flying Alone  (1/00)
Help Me With My Suitcase  (1/00)
Oil Filter Stuck? Use Two Wrenches  (1/00)
Airport Free Parking Scam  (12/99)
Take Earlier Flight, Miss Connection  (11/99)
No Need to Hustle Stepping Aboard Plane  (11/99)
Bumped By Someone On Previous Flight  (9/99)
Carry Two Watches  (9/99)
Learn the Policies Before Renting Car  (9/99)
Empty Your Pockets, Save Your Film  (revised 7/99)
Flight Cancelled Due To Sickout?  (2/99)
Wrong Ticket By Mail/'Net Refundable  (2/99)
Weekend in Hidden City for Lower Fare  (1/99)
All Aboard the Vomit Comet  (1/99)
Changing Baby Inflight  (1/99)
Screaming Children In Airplane  (1/99)
Don't Give Drink Cup Or Food To Fussy Child
Airplane Sweltering? Wear a Swimsuit  (1/99)
I'm A Big Boy Now. I Flew By Myself.  (1/99)
Baggage Smashing  (2/72)
Stranded at the Crowded Airport? Do the Town  (1/99)
Our Unofficial Disney World Page  (12/98)
Don't Volunteer After Successful Standby  (11/98)
Room Too Dark? -- Take Off Lampshade  (10/98)
Extra Large Carryon? -- Fly American  (10/98)
Before You Leave Home  (6/98)
Bomb Detectors Spoil Your Pictures   (4/98)
Missed a Plane Connection?
Don't Jar the Laptop
Flying -- Your Rights, Their Rules
Wait For a Fare War to Buy Plane Tickets
Carry-On Alert For Business Travel
Too Tight Lug Nuts
Telephone Ripoffs in Hotels
Useless Certificates and Packages
Other Web Sites With Travel Tips


What is the shortest English sentence you can think of that uses all 26 letters of the alphabet?

Jonathan R. submits this one (re: a game show host or player who enjoys hunting big game):

     Mr. Jock, TV quiz Ph.D., bags few lynx.

I would like to disqualify proper names and abbreviations for future word games. Proper names need not obey spelling rules. I have encountered the names Srb and Ng and Flxible. Yes, no vowels in the first two. (Try to pronounce these, you probably will get it right.)

A runner up we have had on file for a few years, submittor unknown:

     Pack my box with five dozen liquor jugs.


Don't Hand Suitcase With Valuables To Flight Crew!  (10/01)

We've heard stories about passengers not even allowed to step onto the plane unless they surrendered their suitcases, and then the suitcases were lost. The moral of the story is, don't give up that suitcase!

The ticket brochure clearly states that valuables and medicine should not be in checked baggage. Also the airline refuses to pay for lost valuables because the ticket brochure clearly states that liability is limited to so many dollars.

1. Be sure the baggage is within size and weight limits, which vary from one airline to another, 22 x 14 x 9 inches and 25 pounds is one example.

2. Ask to see a flight crew supervisor, pointing out that the baggage fits under the seat.as mentioned in the ticket brochure.

3. Take the valuables out of the suitcase and then surrender the suitcase and what is left in it.

4. Walk back out to the ticket counter to purchase insurance for the baggage contents.

5. If worst comes to worst, let the flight depart and take the next flight. If you had checked another piece of baggage, the plane will have to be held while that baggage is removed, which gives the airline more incentive to change their mind and let you carry your valuables on board.

6. Write down the name of every person you talk to.

We have been told that passengers have to give up their baggage just so the plane can depart more quickly. This gives the airline all the benefits and the passenger all the inconveniences which is wrong. Airlines are constantly confusing passengers with hard to understand rules and personnel who speak half the truth or even untrue statements. Passengers need to stand up for their rights.

It is easier to dispute the charge for changing your reservation than it is to make a claim for lost baggage. The grounds for disputing the reticketing charge is that the airline did not follow its own published rules about carry-on baggage or changed the rules without warning.

About disobeying flight crew: Flight crew does not have the right to cause you harm or loss. If they insist on arresting you even if you agree to take your baggage and yourself off the plane, they expose themselves to false arrest. (After all, they don't have the right to arrest you if they tell you to jump out the open door of an airborne airplane and you refuse!)

About airlines with a no carry on baggage policy: The airline has the obligation to let you know that in advance of your arrival at the airport to let you plan accordingly, such as leave the valuables behind or send them by insured mail. You can walk off the plane to go to the post office, and dispute any reticketing charge later.

Carry On Baggage and Bulkhead Seats


Carry Two Watches

Two is enough for most folks, three is enough for the most paranoic.. So long as both/all watches are running and show the same time you can be assured that you are not going to miss something because a watch stopped or was inaccurate.

It is very very unlikely for two watches to stop at or about the same time.

Your friend's or spouse's watch can be the second watch so long as s/he is not offended by your asking for the time while wearing your own watch.


Mistake In Mail Order Ticket Refundable

In a Nutshell

"Generally" if you order an airline ticket by mail or over the Internet and it arrives with an error on it, it is refundable. Notify the airline immediately. Use both phone and letter, or both phone and e-mail.

Save and print order blank screens, confirmations, and e-mails for all your Internet purchases. Know how to do this, or don't buy anything over the Internet.

However when the advance purchase deadline is close, you should buy tickets in person, say, at travel agency. Otherwise by the time you get the tickets you ordered, it may be so close to your departure date that you will have to pay a higher fare for corrected tickets.

**********

The first rule of selling merchandise, goods, or services, is that the customer has a right to inspect it before paying. If you are at the ticket counter, when the agent hands you a ticket and you see a mistake, you can refuse it on the spot and the agent will correct the mistake and hand you another ticket. Then you pay for it.

That of course is impossible when buying the merchandise by mail. It therefore must be that when the merchandise does arrive and is defective or not as ordered, the customer has a right to return it for a refund. Sears Roebuck and L.L. Bean and others with famous good reputations for mail order service got those reputations by treating customers excellently. (Also see "Choose Any Two")

Yes it is possible that the person filling the order made the mistake. I will not accuse any airline of deliberately making a mistake but I claim the airline has to prove that the customer made the mistake, not the other way around.

I would feel free to dispute the credit card bill, forcing the airline to get involved that way. The retailing principle described above can be included in the reason.

The jury is still out as to whether you can get an incorrect ticket modified without a fare increase. Under the above principle you do not have to pay the $75.00 change fee but you may have to pay a higher fare if the early purchase deadline has passed. The airline may accept the refund request but force you to "return and re-buy" as opposed to "exchange". At this time as far as I know, there is still a chance you will be subject to the higher fare if any  if you exchange your tickets as opposed to cancelling your trip and demanding a refund. If the airline won't print a corrected ticket without a big fare increase, that is evidence you can use for a true refund request if you did cancel your trip. You are better off paying the change fee and/or a small fare increase now, enjoying your trip, and suing for a refund of the extra costs later as opposed to cancelling the trip and suing for the refund of the tickets themselves. (Negotiate before you litigate.)

Therefore if the advance purchase deadline is close, you really should not order the tickets by mail or over the Internet. Go to the airport, or a travel agent, and buy the ticket in person.

You should not order merchandise over the Internet unless you know how to print out e-mail messages, order blank screens, and confirmations. You will need to know how to use both word processors, editors, and paint programs., the latter come in handy for screens filled with graphics and emblems. You will need these to prove that you did not make the mistake.

But once you printed this information on paper from your own computer, that is adequate proof on your part that you did not make the error. Sure the airline can claim you retouched the screen but the airline has the real burden of proof if their printouts don't match yours and that they did not retouch their screens.

A reader of "Complete Traveler, www.trip.com", I believe his/her initials were M.W. wrote, "The Department of Transportation's (DOT's) Consumer Affairs Decision has ruled that when you receive your paper tickets with the 'non-refundable' notice on them you can get a refund if you notify the airline IMMEDIATELY. Write to the DOT Consumer Affairs division in DC (L'Enfant Plaza, 700 Independence Ave SE) and try to get them to help, or get your Congressman to call their DOT Congressional liaison for you. The DOT usually won't take calls from the public, but it's worth a try."

As soon as you find an error, call the airline on the phone (using 800, 888, 877 numbers only) and also send a note or an e-mail.

If indeed there were numerous instances of incorrect tickets coming from one airline, the chances are much greater that all affected customers will receive refunds. This would include customers who had the tickets modified as opposed to cancelled. This would also include after the fact rebooking at lower advance purchase fares where applicable together with appropriate refunds.


Hotel Room Too Dark?

Take the lampshade off. Many lampshades absorb a lot of the light.

One other travel tip web site recommends carrying your own 100 to 150 watt lamp (light bulb). There are some cautions:

1.  If your suitcase is really tightly packed or is treated roughly by baggage handlers, the lamp might be crushed, leaving broken glass all around inside your suitcase.

2.  If you forget to take out your lamp and put back the one the hotel provided, the maid might pilfer (or confiscate) it.

Also if the smoke detector beeps because of a nearly dead battery I ask the front desk clerk for a new battery. Meanwhile I take a chance on fire safety and throw the old battery away immediately. I cannot stand the periodic beeping which is a form of Chinese water torture.


Extra Large Carryon Baggage?  (10/98)

"Fly American Airlines, official airline of the Boston Pops."

In September and October of 1998 American Airlines prepared a number of radio and TV commercials featuring the Boston Pops orchestra. In one scene the flight attendant was helping one of the musicians strap a cello into a seat.

There is a catch. You must buy a ticket for the large object since it must occupy a seat, not the overhead bin..

In one Internet travel forum a reader reported doing just that. One time the flight was overbooked and the airline personnel still insisted that the large carryon (a cello) be removed to the luggage compartment. It was also reported that tickets bought for objects would not earn frequent flyer miles.

Now American Airlines has a new reputation to uphold. From now on they are going to have a hard time telling you to check luggage that sits in a seat for which you bought a ticket. Otherwise they could be subjected to false advertising claims.

By the way, I suspect that extra insurance to cover checked baggage can be bought for far less than a ticket to fly the object sitting in a seat.

Always pack items sturdily and ruggedly as if they will be checked into the baggage hold. Failure to do this has lead to lots of arguments with flight attendants. Musical instruments need to be put in hard cases.

What the Boston Pops should do next (humor)


Before You Leave Home  (6/98)

These tips are for short vacations. Closing down your summer home for winter requires more complex preparation, descriptions under construction on this web site. Also be careful not to choose the tips that conflict with other plans, for example if someone is going to come and house sit, you of course don't want to turn off the water.

o   Turn off water heater. Caution: On some gas water heaters you turn the knob all the way to the right to turn it off (unlike a radio or TV). Better yet, turn off the circuit breaker or gas cock.

o   Turn off wall faucets that feed the washing machine hoses.

o   If no one is coming to water the lawn, turn off garden hose faucets using the inside shut off valves provided. This prevents vandals from running up your water bill or causing other water related problems.

o   Unplug appliances except refrigerators and freezers. Also unplug lamps not part of a timer system. But is OK to leave plugged in answering machine, clocks, and devices containing clocks such as VCR's.

o   If you don't have an answering machine or don't want to leave one running, unplug all telephones.

o   Turn off garage door opener and lock all garage doors.

o   Try to give away perishable foods.

o   You can go to the post office and arrange to have mail held or forwarded. But it is still desirable to have someone check the mailbox for items that persons other than the postman stuffed in.

o   In winter open cabinet doors under sinks and washbasins, so warmer air in the middle of the room will flow around pipes better.

o   Send in at least a minimum payment for every bill, especially credit card bills, that have arrived. Some mortgage companies and finance companies treat early payments as principal which does not relieve you of the obligation to send a payment closer to the due date, but they may on request mark your file to take an early payment as a payment. But try to avoid calling anyone to whom you send monthly payments unless they have a toll free number.

o   Also the usual, stop newspaper and milk deliveries, etc., have someone come and walk around the yard, pick up mail, mow the lawn or plow the driveway, have a few lights operated by timer switches.

Optional Advanced Items:

o   In spring, summer, and fall, turn main water valve almost off. (Don't turn it completely off unless water heater is turned off. Test it by running an upstairs (top floor) faucet for two or three minutes, it should take that long to fill a drinking glass.

o   In winter, drain plumbing and hot water tank. Do this after all family members have used the bathroom for the last time. (Be absolutely sure water heater fuel or power is turned off before starting this task.) Leave a faucet on the lowest level (such as in a basement laundry sink) open so just in case the main shutoff should be leaky the system won't fill up again. If a friend or relative will visit the house to inspect it, let him know the water is off.

o   Pour a cupful of undiluted car antifreeze in each toilet and bathtub, half a cupful in each sink drain. If your home has master traps further on down the drain line, pour about a quart of extra antifreeze down one washbasin (not a toilet) to make sure some antifreeze reaches these traps.

o   If your basement does not reach freezing temperature in winter, take all canned and bottled unrefrigerated foods down to the basement. This prevents freezing if the heating system fails. Non-dry goods will be ruined if they freeze and then thaw. (Swollen cans may spring tiny leaks that admit bacteria even if they aren't burst or leaking out.) You can save freeze burst cans for a little while if you get home before they warm up and you keep them in the 'fridge for a few weeks.

o   Bring along checks and addresses and toll free information numbers of credit card companies, electric company, etc. so you can pay bills closer to the due dates and keep the money earning interest in your bank account a bit longer.


Almost Official Fare Rules

Have you been bumped off an overbooked airplane?

If a competitor has a replacement flight that gets you there quicker than your airline can offer, ask for it. Some airlines will even put you in first class.

Have you had your luggage lost on a plane trip?

Often airlines give extra bonuses and compensation above what the law requires when they delay you the passenger. But they often deny benefits rightfully yours when they delay your luggage.

Throw away the return flight ticket, airline sends you a bill.

But they won't drag you to the airport and make you finish that cheap round trip itinerary you bought as an alternative to an expensive one way ticket.

Things we would like to see but not included in the details linked to by the above click. You can ask for them anyway.

1.  If you miss your connection because of a delayed flight, you should have priority standing by for the next flight over someone who did not miss a connection.

2.  If your flight is delayed and you feel you will miss a connection and be stranded in the connecting city overnight, the airline should give you their choice between a free hotel room and transportation in the connecting city or a free reschedule of the entire trip.


New Airport Bomb Detectors Spoil Your Vacation Pictures!

The rule is simple, do not put film or regular cameras in checked baggage. Keep them in carry on baggage or better in a small satchel you carry. X-rays don't hurt digital cameras but they too should not be put in checked baggage because they are valuables.

Before leaving home:

1.  Remove jackknives, tools (screwdrivers, tape measures, etc.), other forbidden objects from all baggage. If you absolutely need the jackknife or tools, put them in baggage to be checked only.

2.  Put any valuables, cameras, film, laptop computer, in the carry on baggage.

Before reaching the security check in:

1.  Take all metal objects, keys, coins, etc. out of your pockets and put them into your carry on suitcase. Put camera accessories, empty cameras, flash units, light meters in the suitcase also.

2.  Take out your wallet, put the cash and credit cards in your pocket, and put the wallet in your carry on suitcase.

3.  Take the film cassettes or spools out of the boxes, plastic cans, and foil wrappers and put just the bare cassettes and spools in a plastic bag, preferably transparent. The cans can be put in your suitcase, you may as well throw away the boxes except maybe keep one box of each film speed if there are instructions inside. Digital camera memory can stay in your suitcase.

4.  Tape the cameras so they can't be opened accidentally. Carry the loaded camera(s) separately or hang their straps around your neck. Camcorders and digital cameras can stay in your suitcase.

5.  At the security checkpoint put the film camera(s) and plastic bag with the film in the basket they provide.

While you have the right to ask to have cameras and film checked by hand, there have been occasional reports when the security agents pulled passengers aside to check more of their things by hand when the passengers asked. So you don't want to attract attention.

A long neck strap can come in handy. The security person can examine the camera while the strap is still around your neck. There is no danger of the camera falling on the floor if it is accidentally dropped.

After going through security, open the suitcase and take your keys, loose change, etc. and put that back into your pockets. Put the cameras and film back into the suitcase.

So the airline officials say the older style X-rays won't damage your film? Well they are both right and wrong. A suitcase passing normally through the older machine (not the newer bomb detector) probably won't get enough X-rays to damage the film. But the operator may stop the conveyor belt to take a closer look and even discuss things with the supervisor. All the while the suitcase sits under the X-rays. When your camera and film is in a separate bowl or tray, is is less likely to sit still under the X-rays. Camcorders and digital cameras can go right through the X-rays without problems.


Want the lowest airfare?  (Nov. 97)

Yes you should wait until a sale (fare war).

A long time ago, airlines would refund to you the difference if they offered a lower fare for the same trip after you bought your ticket. You did have to go back to the travel agency or ticket counter and ask.

Nowadays you are charged a fee for making a change to your super saver reservation and that usually wiped out your savings. Also, they only give gift certificates, not cash refunds. (A few airlines, I don't know which, will give you the benefit of the lower fare without the change penalty if everything else on your trip stays the same.)


Avoiding Telephone Ripoffs In Hotels (Nov. 97)

Highlights:

Most hotels add a surcharge for calls made from your room telephone and that may include 800/888/877 calls.

Even if there is no surcharge, you pay more expensive operator assisted rates.

The easiest way to avoid surcharges is to go down and use the lobby phones.

The rate for credit card calls may differ when using pay phones. Find out before making calls.

Sometimes the hotel surcharge it is a percentage of what the phone company charged you. Sometimes it is a flat fee per call. There is no charge for receiving calls.

Some hotels give you the first 20 minutes or so for a flat rate (or free) and add a per minute surcharge after that.

Surcharge Methods

1. A flat fee for each time you pick up the phone handset until you hang up. (We won't elaborate on details how calling within the hotel is not charged.)

2. A per minute charge while you are making calls, sometimes including 800/888 toll free calls (Calls within the hotel are free, and the outside call surcharge rate may vary for local versus long distance.)

3. A percentage surcharge of what the phone company charged the hotel when you bill the call to your room.

4. Some hotels' systems block calls to selected numbers notably those of popular competing long distance carriers such as 1-800-CALL-ATT.

5. For the convenience of persons making short voice calls but to combat tying up lines for long periods with personal computers, some hotels offer the first 20 minutes or so at a flat rate or free and add a per minute surcharge for longer calls.

Strategies

1. If you go down to the lobby and use the pay phones there, you escape all of the hotel surcharges. (Unless method #4 is in place.)

2. If you use a telephone credit card or prepaid calling card, you escape surcharge method #3. Method #4 may prevent you from doing this.

3. If your calling card or long distance carrier lets you press the pound key to let you make another call without hanging up, you can make several calls and pay only one method #1 surcharge if it applies. You also escape method #3 surcharges but not method #2 surcharges.

4. If your long distance carrier has a "call me and I'll call you right back" option, you can escape almost all of the method #2 and method #3 surcharges and pay just one method #1 surcharge for a batch of calls. However certain hotel phone systems might be technologically unable to route the call coming back to your room.


Useless Travel Certificates (Nov. 97)

Highlights:

50% off hotel and car rental certificates are practically worthless.

Mini-vacation certificates are given away or even sold by the thousands and most are never redeemed.

Personal Experiences:

The first time I saw a mini-vacation certificate was when I was in college and someone advertised it on a bulletin board.

Three Days and Two Nights
A Fabulous and Exciting Vacation
Choice of Las Vegas or Orlando
Only thirty dollars!

I went to see what he had to offer and he showed me this cheap looking card with fine print on it. What caught my eye were the words "meals and transportation not included". They made it sound nice, something like:

"Since this package does not include meals or transportation, you are free to come and go as you please and enjoy the many and varied restaurants in the area"

So I was thinking, what was included? Seems like only a hotel room, and probably from a limited selection of second rate hotels. You had to reserve in advance and put down a deposit, too. I didn't buy it.

Also you don't get the three days they advertise. You can't check in before 3 PM and you must check out by 11 AM, giving you just one and two thirds days and two nights.

Then a few years later I joined a half price hotel club and they threw in one of those certificates at no extra charge. I never used it.

I belong to a frequent flyer club (United Mileage Plus) and when I earned an award, they included a certificate for half off a hotel room for two nights and half off a weekend day car rental. I never used these either. Whenever I wanted to stay where a participating hotel was, there were other hotels nearby whose everyday low rate was less than the participating hotel's rate after 50% discount. Once a convention I was attending was held in one of the participating hotels but that time my desired nights were blacked out.

The 50% discount is off the full weekday rate, called the rack rate. Most of the participating hotels offer substantial discounts on weekends without the certificates.

The car rental certificate was useless too. If I were to use it, my credit card, which offers collision insurance for rental cars, would not cover that day. So I would have to pay an additional $15.00 for insurance and that was nearly the entire savings the certificate offered.

Several years earlier the same airline offered a completely free car rental day with their frequent flyer award. I received and used that certificate where the final cost including collision insurance came out to about half the normal cost of renting the car.

I have been to many conventions over the years and each one advertises a special room rate at the hosting hotel. Once I helped plan a convention and I found out that if a banquet is held and enough attendees stay at the hotel, the ballrooms and meeting rooms are provided at no extra charge. If conventioneers get a special room rate, then does that mean the casual vacationing traveler staying at the hotel helps subsidize all this?


Carry On Baggage Alert

Highlights:

Avoid carrying more than one carry-on sized suitcase worth of material for which you may be held liable or accountable.

Use additional baggage insurance offered by airlines.

Choose a seat behind the wings and not at a bulkhead.

Get to the airport early.

Have an emergency plan ready before departure in case you have to check baggage.

Managers, even if not traveling, may accept liability for parcels in writing and in absentia to allow travelers to carry more on a trip.


On many flights, passengers are not able to carry on as much baggage as they planned to.

Choose a seat behind the wings. People sitting at the back of the plane board first and therefore have more space available for carry on baggage.

Don't choose a bulkhead seat. Then you are at least guaranteed space under the next seat for one carry-on.

Get to the airport early. If you don't, everybody else will have boarded first and taken up all of the carry on baggage space. You may even lose your seat selection.

If you want to board before your row is called, get behind someone who is obviously carrying more baggage than allowed. The gate agent will find it "mighty hard" to let him board and refuse your boarding.

Consider extra insurance coverage. Arrange for its use and cost before departure.

On business trips prior to departure, the manager should specify the precise procedure in case there is no carry on space on the plane and material has to become checked baggage. Arrangements for contingent costs, such as changing to a different flight or staying an extra night, should also be made before departure.

If you are not comfortable about the baggage arrangements for your trip, don't take all of it. Let your manager choose what you take. Have the folks at the other end prepare a laptop or other PC and you just bring the diskettes. Government classified material cannot become checked baggage. Courier services are a viable alternative to handle baggage.

Contrary to popular belief, custody of a parcel and responsibility for it are separable. Nothing prevents a manager, even if not traveling, from accepting the responsibility, accountability, and liability in absentia for the safe and secure transport of company materials (except government classified materials). Travelers should get this in writing.

Selected articles on carry on baggage (subject to availability):

    USA Today article #1 *
    USA Today article #2 *
    ABC News article #1 *
    ABC News article #2 *


Too Tight Lug Nuts

After you have wheel or brake work done, try to undo all of the wheel lug nuts before leaving the service center. If any are too tight, have the mechanics help you right away. You should be able to undo all of the lug nuts without kicking or jumping  hard on the wrench although it is OK to stand on the wrench.

I used to find once in awhile, months later the wheel lug nuts are so tight I cannot get them off to change a flat tire. This leads to trip delay and inconvenience at best, or damage to the wheel or injury to a person struggling with the lug wrench. The lug nut can get deformed to the point that a welding torch is needed to get the wheel off.

Auto clubs like AAA get a lot of unnecessary service calls because service stations, even those they give their stamp of approval to, put the lug nuts on too tight.

When you change a tire yourself, use only your arms, not your feet, to tighten the lug nuts. In fact, if you are a strong person, don't hold the lug wrench at the extreme end when tightening. This leaves more leverage the next time you must take the wheel off.

In one of the late 1970's TV episodes of The Incredible Hulk, David (played by the late Bill Bixby) was injured trying to take off a flat tire and he changed into the hulk and pushed the car down a ravine.


A few other web sites with travel tips  (Subject to availability and non-obsolescence)

ABC News Travel
(http://www.abcnews.com/sections/Travel/index.html)

Air Travel Unlimited
(http://antares.prodigy.com/igroups/escape/airtrcoi/airtrcoi.htm)

USA Today
(http://www.usatoday.com/life/travel/ltfront.htm)

Kaitlin Sherwood
(http://www.webfoot.com/travel/tips)

The DIS (Unofficial Disney World Discussion)
(http://www.wdwinfo.com)

Diana Fairechild
Healthy Flying   (http://www.flyana.com)

The Skillful Art of Budget Travel
(http://www.frommers.com/budget/ )

Delta Airlines
(http://www.delta.com)

United Airlines
(http://www.ual.com)


All parts (c) Copyright 1997-2009, Allan W.Jayne, Jr. unless otherwise noted or other origin stated.

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