a group of people posing for a photo
Brian Cohen·
Air TravelExperiences
··1 Comment·7 min read

The Delta Jet Drag Was Anything BUT a Drag

I t was time for the big moment where the bloggers would prove that the Delta Jet Drag was anything but a drag as a result of testing our mettle by pulling Delta metal but not earning a medal — only because trophies were the prizes instead of medals.

Picking up from where we left you last time, the moment has come for the bloggers who comprise the team Global Hashtags to pull a Boeing 757-232 airplane with nothing but a thick rope and brute strength.

We are doomed…

Photograph provided courtesy of Delta Air Lines.
Photograph provided courtesy of Delta Air Lines.

…so it is time to limber up — for real this time. Just look at the Frequent Miler and Melinda Danielsen setting examples for the team to follow — but no one else is paying any attention to them.

Photograph provided courtesy of Delta Air Lines.
On your marks…er…we mean, on your “widgets”… Photograph provided courtesy of Delta Air Lines.

We lined up at the red “widgets” which were painted on the concrete below us…

Photograph provided courtesy of Delta Air Lines.
Photograph provided courtesy of Delta Air Lines.

…and started to get into the spirit…

Photograph provided courtesy of Delta Air Lines.
Photograph provided courtesy of Delta Air Lines.

…to the point where some members of the team were taking photographs of themselves.

Photograph provided courtesy of Delta Air Lines.
Photograph provided courtesy of Delta Air Lines.

It is time to approach the rope…

Photograph provided courtesy of Delta Air Lines.
Photograph provided courtesy of Delta Air Lines.

…and we picked it up…

Photograph provided courtesy of Delta Air Lines.
That funky shadow of all of us with the rope on the right is — well — funky. Photograph provided courtesy of Delta Air Lines.

…and we started pulling…

Photograph provided courtesy of Delta Air Lines.
Photograph provided courtesy of Delta Air Lines.

…and we pulled harder…

Photograph provided courtesy of Delta Air Lines.
Photograph provided courtesy of Delta Air Lines.

…you can see by the looks on our faces that we were giving it our all — and yet having the time of our lives…

Photograph provided courtesy of Delta Air Lines.
Photograph provided courtesy of Delta Air Lines.

…but it was apparently not enough for the Frequent Miler…

Photograph provided courtesy of Delta Air Lines.
Photograph provided courtesy of Delta Air Lines.

“Is anyone behind me even trying? Do I have to do this all by myself? Come on — pull harder!!!”

Photograph provided courtesy of Delta Air Lines.
If you are a regular reader of One Mile at a Time and are visiting The Gate to read this article: yes, that is Ben Schlappig in the center of the photograph — and that is all I will say about that, so comment all you like in the Comments section below. Photograph provided courtesy of Delta Air Lines.

So we pull even harder…

Photograph provided courtesy of Delta Air Lines.
We pause for a moment to admire the official footwear chosen for the Delta Jet Drag and worn by Kathy Kass of Will Run For Miles — designed to make you green with envy. Photograph provided courtesy of Delta Air Lines.

Interestingly enough, none of the members of our team — to my knowledge, anyway — has ever pulled an airplane before; so it was the first time for all of us.

Photograph provided courtesy of Delta Air Lines.
Angelina Aucello, Matthew Klint, Ben Schlappig and Scott Mayerowitz pull on the rope to drag a Boeing 757-232 airplane. Photograph provided courtesy of Delta Air Lines.

I have to say that Matthew Klint looks much happier pulling an airplane than he does sitting in the premium class cabin aboard an airplane — at least, according to the photographs used at Live and Let’s Fly.

Photograph provided courtesy of Delta Air Lines.
Photograph provided courtesy of Delta Air Lines.

Did you ever expect to see a photograph of Ben Schlappig wearing a shirt with the Delta logo on it?

Photograph provided courtesy of Delta Air Lines.
Photograph provided courtesy of Delta Air Lines.

The facial expressions of Scott Mayerowitz — a journalist who writes for the Associated Press, which could cause one to ponder what the heck he is doing with a bunch of bloggers in the first place — are priceless.

Photograph provided courtesy of Delta Air Lines.
Photograph provided courtesy of Delta Air Lines.

…and then suddenly — and sadly — our turn at pulling a Boeing 757-232 airplane had concluded.

Photograph provided courtesy of Delta Air Lines.
Photograph provided courtesy of Delta Air Lines.

It did not matter what place we were in — at least, at that moment, anyway — we were all simply proud to have accomplished it.

Photograph provided courtesy of Delta Air Lines.
Photograph provided courtesy of Delta Air Lines.

That is yours truly in the foreground on the left in the photograph shown above. I was only one of at least two members of the team who brought work gloves to pull on that rope.

See also
Photograph provided courtesy of Delta Air Lines.
What are the chances of this photograph being displayed at the Michael W Travels weblog? Photograph provided courtesy of Delta Air Lines.

At least one of us had to jump for joy — and guess which member of the team did just that.

Photograph provided courtesy of Delta Air Lines.
Photograph provided courtesy of Delta Air Lines.

René de Lambert, Tommy Danielsen and Jamie Larounis leave the rope now laid on the concrete on the ground behind them.

Photograph provided courtesy of Delta Air Lines.
Photograph provided courtesy of Delta Air Lines.

Despite dragging the jet being only a memory at this point, Jeanne Marie Hoffman appears to have momentarily lost her balance — but Scott Mayerowitz is still pumped up as ever. I was not kidding when I wrote in this article that he is confident and serious about our team’s chances. He is a serious reporter who knows how to have fun. How can you not like that?!?

Photograph provided courtesy of Delta Air Lines.
Photograph provided courtesy of Delta Air Lines.

“I ain’t done yet” is what Michael W. seems to be saying. “Get me something else to pull. You there on that TUG — let me pull your vehicle.”

Photograph provided courtesy of Delta Air Lines.
Photograph provided courtesy of Delta Air Lines.

Our time was 12.189 seconds, which was enough to win third place in our division. The award is currently on display in the offices of the corporate communications department at the world headquarters of Delta Air Lines for the time being…

Photograph provided courtesy of Delta Air Lines.
Photograph provided courtesy of Delta Air Lines.

…but far more importantly than that prize for winning third place is the fact that at least $5,115.00 of the initial goal of $1,000.00 has been raised for a great cause.

The team — of which I was proud to be a member, thanks to Paul Skrbec of Delta Air Lines and Ed Pizzarello — comprised of the following people, listed in alphabetical order by last name with links to their respective Internet web sites:

 

Please remember that it is not too late to consider donating to the Relay For Life of the American Cancer Society. We may have far exceeded our goal; but the next level is $6,000.00. For more information and details, please click here, as the official Internet web site for team Global Hashtags will still be available for at least the remainder of May.

Thank you in advance.

All photographs provided courtesy of Delta Air Lines.

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