New Rules: What's different from 2010

US Airways has done an admirable job of tightening up the rules this year and making it more difficult to earn cheap hits.  Among the new rules, which I'll add to as things change:

• Hotels now require 200 miles per stay to count as a hit and 850 miles per transfer to count as a hit.  Ouch.  There go some very easy meal hits at Starwood, not to mention the 1 point transfers for Platinum members.
• There's now 40 hits, but the additional four are only for Preferred members and earn another 10,000 miles, which count toward status.
• There's a slight change in the earnings ramp: You get fewer miles at the lower level of hits and more incremental miles at the higher levels.
• Sorry, only one car rental per day.  No finding a friendly rental location and knocking them out all on the same day.
• The dates for the promo will run September 14-November 14.  Don't be late.  Or early, since last year started on September 1.
• There is, at least, the implication that if any of your hits reverse due to a cancelled subscription, US will take away all your miles, not just the one from that hit.
• Miles are not offered for quotes, unlike last year, where you could get a hit for an insurance quote.

Thus begins my journey...

As a way of keeping myself sane for the US Airways Grand Slam promo, I'm starting my blog to keep track of my attempt to get the 36 hits needed for 100,000 US Airways hits in the cheapest way possible.  Valuing the miles at a penny per, anything under $1,000 total qualifies.  Plus the fun of it all.