Curtis Granderson of the NY Yankees here to tell you how excited I am to be hosting Delta’s first ever online scavenger hunt! In honor of Delta Dugout, taking place this weekend May 20^th -May 22^nd and celebrating all things NY baseball, we’ll be sending you clues that take you to some of my favorite landmarks around the city. You’ll definitely want to join in on the fun for a chance to win an amazing prize package – and who knows maybe I’ll even see you along the way! Check out the details and rules below:

• Your teams should be made up of 2-5 participants (no more or less)
• Using the clues we tweet out from @Delta & @cgrand14 each day, your team should find the location or item and take a photo of it with your whole team in the picture
• The photos you take should be tweeted out using #Hunt4Dugout (and #DeltaDugout if you have room!)
• The first team to find all of the items/locations, take team photos and tweet those photos with the #Hunt4Dugout hashtag, wins!
• Remember, your photos need to be available to view at the final location (from phone, camera, or online), and you must be at the final location between 11:30am and 12:30pm on Saturday to win.

What exactly are you competing for? The first place team wins round-trip tickets on Delta anywhere in the continental 48 states, (no more than 5 tickets), plus surprise Yankee memorabilia! And the second place team doesn’t go home empty handed—you’ll win tickets to the May 21st Yankees game vs. the NY Mets and some surprise Yankees memorabilia as well.

Remember, #Hunt4Dugout is running Wednesday, May 18, 2011 – Saturday, May 21, 2011 so stay tuned for clues along the way.

Good luck!

Curtis Granderson

New York Yankees

Rules for #Hunt4Dugout:

1. Scavenger hunt teams must be made up of no more than 5 and no less than 2 team member. Each team must have at least 1 player who is 18 or older to be eligible to play and to win.
2. Minors may participate but need a legal guardian to sign off on participation and to sign an affidavit if they are determined to be on the winning team.
3. Each day for 4 consecutive days beginning Wednesday, May 18, 2011, @Delta and @cgrand14 be tweeting clues to NY City location(s) or landmark(s). The contest will end on Saturday, May 21, 2011.
4. The winner is the first team to find all 4 locations or landmarks, photograph each location or landmark WITH THE ENTIRE TEAM IN THE RECOGNIZABLE PART OF THE LOCATION OR LANDMARK, and TWEET THE PHOTO WITH THE HASHTAG #Hunt4Dugout. Upon arrival to the final location or landmark, the winning team will be the FIRST team to arrive with the tweets and photos available for verification to sponsor officials via computer, smartphone or other means.
5. If technical issues interrupt, i.e. Twitter goes down, the sponsors are not responsible.

Be sure to follow @Delta and @cgrand14 for the clue tweets that will lead teams to the locations needed to complete the #Hunt4Dugout scavenger hunt. Each tweet will contain the hashtag, #Hunt4Dugout. At 9 AM Eastern on Wednesday, May 18, 2011 we will begin giving clues until the conclusion on Saturday, May 21, 2011.

Terms and Conditions

NO PURCHASE NECESSARY TO ENTER OR WIN. A PURCHASE OR PAYMENT OF ANY KIND WILL NOT INCREASE YOUR CHANCES OF WINNING.

All applicable federal, state and local laws and regulations apply. Void where prohibited by law. Entry in the Contest constitutes your full and unconditional acceptance of these Official Contest Rules (the “Official Rules”).

The sole method of entry in the contest is through Online Entry via Twitter.com

As a condition of entry into the Contest and by entering into such Contest, entrant grants Sponsor and its parents, subsidiaries, affiliates, divisions, advertising and promotional agencies,  and each of the foregoing entities’ employees, \royalty-free license to publicize, broadcast, display and/or otherwise use the Contest entrant’s name, city, state, Twitter handle and photos in any media now known or hereafter devised throughout the world in perpetuity for advertising and publicity purposes in connection with the Contest.

GRAND PRIZE: Autographed baseballs, photo of Curtis Granderson, and round-trip domestic ticket on Delta for no more than five tickets (contiguous 48 States, including Canada,). (AVR: $750.00 each) Second Place Prize: Four tickets to Yankees game on Saturday May 21, 2011. (ARV: $125.00 each).By entering or participating in the Contest, entrants agree to be bound by these Official Rules and by the decisions of Sponsor, which are final and binding in all respects.

By participating in the Contest, you agree to indemnify, defend, release and hold Delta Air Lines, Inc., its officers, directors, employees and agents (the “Sponsor Entities”) harmless from and against any and all losses, demands, damages, rights, claims, actions and liabilities of any kind (including reasonable attorneys’ fees and legal costs) arising out of or related to (a) entrant’s participation in the Contest, (b) entrant’s participation in any Prize-related activities (including, without limitation, any property loss, damage, personal injury or death caused to any person(s)), and (c) any claims of infringement related to the Sponsor Entities’ use of any photographs, drawings or any other materials submitted to Sponsor in connection with the Contest. The Winner assumes all liability for any injury, death, or damage caused, or allegedly caused, by participating in the Contest or use or redemption of the Prize.

By participating in the Contest, you waive the right to claim any damages whatsoever, including, but not limited to, punitive, consequential, direct, or indirect damages. Entrants agree that in any cause of action, in no event shall the Sponsor Entities be liable for attorneys’ fees and/or experts’ fees and costs. WITHOUT LIMITING THE FOREGOING, THE CONTEST, ALL PRIZES, AND ALL MATERIALS PROVIDED IN THE CONTEST ARE PROVIDED “AS IS” WITHOUT WARRANTY OF ANY KIND, EITHER EXPRESS OR IMPLIED, INCLUDING WITHOUT LIMITATION THE IMPLIED WARRANTIES OF MERCHANTABILITY AND FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE.

Limit one entry ticket/prize per team of no less than 2 and no more than 5 members.  Winners will be selected at the completion of the event from entries received on the event dates.  Odds of winning depend on number of eligible entries collected.  Participants need present to win. An additional winner will be chosen should the provided contact information not be correct, or usable.  Potential winners must sign and return an affidavit of eligibility/publicity release before award of prize.

Grand Prize: One prizes of round-trip travel for team of no less than 2 and no more than 5 members anywhere Delta flies in the continental United States. (ARV: $750.00 each), will be awarded.  Second Place Prize: Four tickets to Yankees game on Saturday May 21, 2011. (ARV: $125.00 each). All prizes are non-refundable and may not be exchanged.  Lost, stolen or otherwise destroyed prizes will not be replaced.  Travel prizes are awarded in the form of certificates redeemable for tickets.  Certificate seats are limited and may not be available on all flights or in all markets.  Certificates are non-transferable, are not redeemable for cash and are void if sold or bartered.  The sale or barter of tickets obtained through redemption of Certificates is also prohibited.  Any tickets obtained through such sale or barter are void and will not be honored for travel.  After ticketing, date, time and routing changes may be permitted (subject to the availability of booking class) upon payment of applicable fees.

Payments of all federal, state and local taxes related to the award of a prize are solely the responsibility of the winner of the prize. The winner will be required to complete and submit an IRS Form W-9 with the winner’s full Social Security Number or the equivalent for receipt of any prize valued at $600 or more or for any prizes awarded by Delta with an aggregate value of $600 or more and such winnings will be reported to the IRS. Failure to submit a complete W-9 or equivalent will result in forfeiture of the prize.

Certificates do not include a $3.70 Federal Excise Tax, Passenger Facility Charge(s) of up to $4.50, and the September 11th Security Fee of up to $2.50  which will be imposed on each flight segment in the passenger’s ticketed itinerary.  A flight segment is defined as a takeoff and a landing.  For travel within the United States $23 fee for 1 checked bag and $32 fee for second checked bag when bags are prepaid during online check-in at delta.com.  There is a $2 surcharge for the first bag, $3 for the second bag, when checking in via ticket counter, kiosk, or curbside.  Allowances subject to size/weight limits.  These taxes and fees are subject to change, are the responsibility of the passenger and (except for bag fees) must be paid at the time the ticket is booked.  Any taxes, fees, or changes paid at the time of ticket issuance will be refunded if ticket is not used.  However, once redeemed, Certificates are void and will have no further value.  Stopovers/Upgrades/Waitlisting/Open Returns are not permitted for tickets booked with Certificates.  Standby travel is not permitted except for an earlier flight on the same day as flight ticketed, for an additional charge of $25.  Lost, stolen or otherwise destroyed Certificates will not be replaced.  Schedules are subject to change without notice.  Certificate travel will not qualify for SkyMiles mileage.  Additional restrictions may apply.  It is the responsibility of the passenger to be in possession of all necessary documentation (e.g., photo ID) at the time and place of departure.  Delta reserves the right to deny boarding to any passengers without proper documentation.

This promotion is subject to all federal, state and local laws and regulations, and is void where prohibited by law.

A list of winners may be obtained by sending a request prior to December 31, 2011 to “Delta Dugout in Madison Square Park #Hunt4Dugout Scavenger Hunt” Delta Air Lines, Inc. Dept. 010, P.O. Box 20706, Atlanta, GA 30320 6001.

Sponsor: Delta Air Lines, Inc., Atlanta, GA.

There’s been a great deal of media activity around two customers who were denied boarding on flight #5452 (MEM-CLT) this past Friday. As you probably already know, Atlantic Southeast Airlines (ASA) who was operating the regional jet for us, offered its apologies to the customers and is following up with the crew to understand circumstances surrounding this event. Atlantic Southeast worked over the weekend to answer questions about the situation, and we want to be sure you hear our perspective on this issue, and help clarify any questions you may have.

As the individuals responsible for the safety and security of their flight and everyone on board, pilots industry-wide do have authority over their aircraft within the parameters set by their individual carrier. Although, following a situation like this it is standard to review the matter with the pilots and talk with them about their decision so we can have our own understanding.

On Friday, once all the follow-up screenings had been completed, Delta ground crew immediately offered our apologies and worked to get these passengers booked on our next available flight and did everything possible to help make the passengers comfortable while they waited.

We want you to know that as a global carrier we transport people from every country of the world, every religion, every ethnicity and every race, and we take very seriously the trust our customers place in us. Our employees represent countries all over the world, and wouldn’t have it any other way.

But most importantly, although we were not the operators of the flight, these passengers are our customers and we would like to join Atlantic Southeast once again in offering an apology for any impact the situation had on both them and their travel.

Toby Broberg

Director, Customer Care

We recently came across two “urban explorers” that set out on an trip across the U.S. in a taxi cab to spark their spirit of exploration. Their approach reminded us that sometimes we all just need a breather and should take an adventure of our own. We asked John and Dan to consider continuing their journey so those of us that might not be able to drop everything today can live vicariously through them, and be inspired to plan our own adventure!  And, their story continues here:

On the rainy afternoon of April 16, the spark of a harebrained idea was stoked into a bonfire of adventure. The concept was simple: hail a New York City yellow cab. The outcome was extreme – John Belitsky and I paid a cabbie $5,000 to drive us about 3,000 miles across the country to Los Angeles.

When our soon-to-be driver, travel companion, and bunkmate Mohammed Alam heard the proposition he responded “Why don’t you take the plane?” It was a valid question at the time, but over next twelve days, I renewed my love affair with the American landscape and John and Alam became enamored with the open road.

After returning to NYC a few days ago we began to unwind: we washed clothes, visited with friends and family, and caught up on our respective careers. Yet something about the trip seemed unfinished, the story incomplete. We are wired with wanderlust, mired by a Tourist complex, and committed to having fun for fun’s sake. Thus, we’ve decided to extend our first mission and go on another cab adventure.

 Tonight we will fly across the Atlantic, and our next “fare play” will begin as soon as we land at London Heathrow. In the UK, cab drivers must pass an extensive exam called “The Knowledge” before they get behind the wheel. We will hail iconic black cabs and test our Yankee street smarts against British know-how. Which destination, Messrs? Well, we’re open to suggestions and I’m sticking to the mantra “randomness keeps things running.” We might jaunt over to Manchester, venture to Madrid, or even trek to Mumbai…

While John and I continue to be fueled by flights of fancy, we will certainly fancy this flight across the pond. We are sitting side by side in our Business Elite flatbeds, thanks to Delta. I’m 6’4” (193 centimeters), so after a couple of weeks in the back of the cramped yellow cab I am cherishing the chance to be supine while I watch the world pass by. I’m also excited to have been admitted to what our friend Chris Johnson calls, “the greatest bar in the world—first class.” Johnny and I will soon be lifting into the air and raising a glass (or three) to the Atlantic. London is calling…

Dan W.

Dan Wuebben was born in Omaha, Nebraska and has spent his recent summers crossing the nation on the great interstate vein, i-80. On May 3, 2011, he completed the requirements to earn his doctorate in English at the CUNY Graduate Center of the City University of New York. He has written a manuscript, Power-Lines: Electricity, Landscape, and the American Mind and he will begin teaching writing at UC-Santa Barbara in September.

Visit John and Dan’s blog at ny2lainacab.tumblr.com and follow them on twitter @johnbelitsky and @randyrove.

 Want to start planning your own adventure?  Check out their interactive travel planning tool at http://bit.ly/iO4wjb.