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On Thursday, April 27th, my wife and I attended the Freddie Awards at the Steven F. Udvar–Hazy Center the Smithsonian annex of the National Air and Space Museum. If you haven’t been to the museum before, it’s stunning. Aircraft throughout the eras including the space shuttle and the SR-71 blackbird fill the massive 200,000 sq ft hanger. If there was ever a perfect space for a bunch of AV geeks to get together to see the results of the Freddie Awards for loyalty…this is it.
If you’re unfamiliar with the Freddie Awards, Randy Petersen started them in 1988 to honor or Sir Freddie Laker. Randy has been a mentor to me, championing this blog, but also starting the likes of Boarding Area, Inside Flyer, FlyerTalk, amongst many others. He’s a pioneer, a friend, and someone you’re extremely lucky to have on your side rooting for your success.
This was only my 2nd Freddie’s and this year we were graced with Randy Petersen’s presence as host. As we all settled into our seats, a spaceman entered from stage right. He didn’t just walk up, he slowly, as if on the moon itself, took his time, planting one foot after another up the stairs, and then raised his flag on stage. The entire audience hushed to an engaged smirk. We knew it was Randy, and we were all ready for a ride.
Randy entertained the crowd effortlessly the entire night. None of us would be blogging, tiktok-Ing, youtube-ing, etc about points and miles without Randy. He started it all. He’s the OG, the Godfather, the first of our kind. He loves loyalty, travel, and the marriage between the two. Some people are born entertainers and Randy is at home in front of a crowd passionately speaking about what and who he loves. From the volunteers who make this happen, the sponsors whose name are on the banners, to the little known bloggers like myself who happened to hit a hot streak on TikTok and now have written a book. He not only wanted to promote my book, but put it on all the tables for a lot of industry insiders to take home with them.
Randy was joined by Ed Pizzarello and Gary Leff who did a fantastic job keeping us entertained and do an incredible amount of work to make this event happen.
After the final winner was announced, Randy took a moment to sit down and shocked us all announcing his retirement. This will be Randy’s final time hosting, potentially even attending the Freddie’s and the entire crowd gave him a standing ovation. There is no one like him, nor will there ever be. My heart if full of appreciation for the opportunity he’s given me, but also how he treats everyone. No one is a stranger around Randy, his arms are open, and his spirit infectious.
I’m very grateful I was able to be at the Freddie’s for Randy’s final time around the Freddie’s stage. What an incredible way to honor him.
If you’d like to see the full list of winners…you can go here
Opinions, reviews, analyses & recommendations are the author’s alone, and have not been reviewed, endorsed or approved by any of these entities.
Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card
Welcome Offer
75k Points after $4k spend in 3 months
*you may find an elevated offer walking into a branch – see below
Annual Fee
$95
Points Earned
Transferrable Chase Ultimate Rewards
- 75k points after $4k spend in 3 months
- Worth $937.50 in Chase Travel℠ and way more if you maximize transfer partners
- Some people have seen Chase branches offering the following:
- 75k Ultimate Rewards After $4k spend in 3 months + 10k Ultimate Rewards after $6k in 6 months
- 5x on all travel purchased through Chase Travel℠
- 3x on dining, including eligible delivery services for takeout & dining out
- 3x on select streaming services
- 3x on online grocery purchases
- (excluding Target, Walmart and wholesale clubs)
- $50 Annual Chase Travel Hotel Credit via Chase Travel℠
- The begins immediately for new cardmembers and after your account anniversary for existing cardmembers
- 2x on all other travel
- 10% Anniversary Bonus
- Every year you keep the card, your total spend will yield a 10% points bonus. If you spend $10k in a year, you’ll get 1k bonus points
- Chase Sapphire Preferred continues to redeem at 1.25c in the Chase Travel℠ and the slew of other benefits remain in tact including Auto Rental Collision Damage Waiver ( primary ), purchase protections, etc.
- Points are transferrable to 14 Ultimate Rewards partners
- Redeem in Chase Travel℠ for 1.25 cents per point
- No foreign transaction fees
- Suite of Travel and Purchase Coverage
- Auto Rental Collision Damage Waiver is my favorite
- Get complimentary access to DashPass which unlocks $0 delivery fees and lower service fees for a minimum of one year when you activate by December 31, 2024
- $95 Annual Fee
We keep an up to date spreadsheet that lists the best ever offers: You can find that spreadsheet here.
Historically 80k is a very, very good offer and hit in both 2022 and 2023. In 2021, we saw the offer hit an all time high of 100k. Who knows if that will ever come back.
Main Cast:
Cards that earn flexible points and should be used on the bulk of your purchases.
Supporting Cast:
Cards that earn fixed points in the currency of the airline/hotel and can not be transferred at attractive rates. These cards yield benefits that make it worth keeping, but not necessarily worth putting a lot of your everyday spend on.
The Chase Sapphire Preferred® is exceptional starter card and offers transferrable Ultimate Rewards, and pairs well with other Chase cards.
If you carry this card alongside Chase’s cashback cards like the Chase Freedom Flex℠and Chase Freedom Unlimited® or the business versions: Ink Business Cash® , Ink Business Unlimited® you can combine the points into Preferred account and transfer into hotel and airline partners
Annual fee is quite low at $95 a year + you get a 10% anniversary bonus on points + $50 hotel credit in Chase travel.
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