Originally Posted by captkdobbs

Something to think about moving your family somewhere, and Reserve -vs- holding a line:

Reserve in your home town MAY be better than holding a line and commuting (based on seniority). If you are senior and can get your trip preferences through PBS or trading, then commuting is OK. Commuting for a "Junior line" may be as bad as commuting for reserve. If every trip you get stuck with is not commutable (either/both ends), it costs you days away from home (days off) and requires a crashpad or hotel. Commuting to reserve is just the pits.

I'm staying on my initial AC by choice and getting to my hometown ASAP. I'm going to be junior in my domicile for quite a while and am expecting to sit reserve for quite a while. NYC is moving rapidly and I would definitely hold a line sooner there. The question for NYC is 'what KIND of line would I hold?'. Would my seniority hold commutable trips?

I'm planning on sitting bottom-seniority-Reserve at home until I see my relative seniority in NYC (or other bases) is high enough to hold the trip-type that I want.

When you are making decisions regarding bidding, remember that trip-type, commutability and line-vs-reserve is all seniority based. You may 'hold a line' sooner in one domicile over another one, but a 'junior line' may not be much better than reserve. And reserve in your home city may be better than commuting to that line. Moving your family is a HUGE decision; make sure it is a FAMILY decision!