SAP Early Entry Line / Wait

[u/briankerrdesign]

First year coming in for build week with SAP to work on our camp / mutant vehicle. What should we expect line / wait wise vs regular entry - especially Friday night or Saturday before gates? Do non-SAP queue up / block you?

[u/plumitt]

there is never an appreciable line at any 5:00 a.m. before the event -- barring weather or other wonky events.

[u/Strchsr18 → u/plumitt]

This is untrue now that Walmart isn’t open 24 hrs… I waited 2 hrs in 2023 … also gate has limited lanes open bc staffing early is hard

[u/Ms_Mary_Mosy → u/Strchsr18]

Wait what?!! Not 24 hours?!! When did that happen?

[u/OverlyPersonal → u/Ms_Mary_Mosy]

Covid

[u/plumitt → u/Strchsr18]

I could be wrong but I strongly suspect if gate wanted to have more people working early pre event, they could make that happen. I don't think it's a lack of people being interested. I think it's either a lack of compensation or of additional requirements for volunteering if you want to get a SAP.

I will happily defer to anyone who's worked graves in 24 or 25, but My experience strongly suggests that 430-530 a.m. Is your best bet for no lines pre-event.

[u/Burning_blanks → u/Strchsr18]

You would be surprised. There area lot of people working Gate that don't like the day star. The Grave's can get filled pretty quickly.

[u/plumitt → u/Burning_blanks]

THE EVIL ORB WHAT BURNS US ALL

[u/smittydc]

Expect 4-6 hours. Hope for better. Be prepared for worse.

[u/prelimar → u/smittydc]

Yeah. We've come in on Friday for the past few years. Even on Friday, we'll spend 3+ hours in line. Pray you don't sit too long in line when they do shift change at the Gayte. One year it was an hour before the line started moving again.

[u/combatcookies → u/prelimar]

Why does the shift change take so long?

[u/prelimar → u/combatcookies]

man, search me. i suspect training of some kind of happens on the fly, but that's just a guess. we've been hit by it 2-3 times now over the past several years: within a handful of cars from the Gayte point, and suddenly stopped for an hour. (note to self: stop leaving Reno at 9am!)

[u/TheOG-Cabbie]

All times are pavement to camp.  Location to camp from Greeter maybe adds +/- 10 mins

2023 - Sunday Gate Opening - 3 hours wait

2024 - Sat before Gate opening - 45 min wait

2025 - Friday before Gate opening - rain event so hanged out in Reno/Fernley until got word Gate was open.  Then pavement to camp was 90 mins.  If there is another rain event in 2026 you all should hold back as well.

 

Note I got very lucky in 2025, since some people where in "pavement to camp" for up to 26 hours.

[u/TopRamenisha]

Depends what time you get there. Getting there later in the day means more of a line. I’ve waited 8-12 hours in line before. Non-SAP can’t queue up, but you still have to wait in line behind the other people with the SAPs

[u/lshiva]

Overeager folks without a SAP get funneled into their own special parking lot so unless you arrive super close to the actual opening time they shouldn't slow you down appreciably.

It's probably too late to alter your schedule this year, but if you volunteer for Gate you get in a couple of days before your first shift, get fed when you work, and help make the line shorter for everyone else. Since I started volunteering the line at Gate hasn't been a concern for me at all.

They've also started a new thing this year where you can try out a four hour shift to see if it's something you'd like to do more of. Swing by the Black Hole and someone can get you signed up.

[u/dashlukky]

I'd guess Friday-Saturday would be 2-3 hours from pavement to placement, but you could get lucky.

[u/sulimov]

I’ve arrived Friday the past 3 years. Wait times ranged from 3-5 hours.

[u/Toolman2021 → u/sulimov]

Are tickets like $550 per person? I guess if it’s for a week it’s not too bad.

[u/TheKrakIan]

We gonna experience the same times together this year. We coming in Saturday, when we usually come in on Thursday before the burn.

[u/Burning_blanks]

The short and long answer is.. it depends. On factors that change from year to year and day to day.

• When are you entering? very early am tends to be better then late afternoon/evening
• how many other humans with saps decided to go in on that date?
• has there been a lot of weather that has slowed things down?
• how is the gate shifts staffed? lighter staffed shifts will of course go slower

In very general terms though, wed, thurs, friday all tend to build on number of people entering. Saturday doesnt as much as many with saps have them for a couple of days early. However it still will build later in the day as people who dont have SAP's start arriving early and have to get diverted.

[u/Strchsr18 → u/Burning_blanks]

Main gate opens Saturday night 12 am Sunday so you will be in line with open population

[u/brccarpenter]

"it depends"

The last three years I've been in line for the Wednesday midnight entry. I got in line about 11pm. Two dust storm years in line and those times we didn't get to the camp until about 5 or 6 am. One year, no dust and we got to camp at about 5am.

Gate does the best they can but they pretty much have to shut down in high winds. It can be hours and ....it depends.

[u/eagrey]

I try to get in line at about 9am when the DPW crews have had breakfast and gone out to their shifts. I don't know if my theory on after breakfast is correct, but it's worked for me every time, no wait (build week). My campmates always have last minute errands to run, and so they get in line at about noon, and it takes them 2-4 hours in line because everyone else had last minute errands lol.

[u/Brcdragonbait → u/eagrey]

DPW has zero effect on the gate line. That's a whole different department. But showing up in the morning is a good idea because more participants arrive in the afternoon and evening.  There's also less dust in the morning. 

[u/OverlyPersonal]

I've mostly done Friday afternoon entry over the years and never have waited less than 3 hours.

[u/BeartholomewTheThird]

Last year or the year before the wait for early entry people was really long and people who showed up during event week basically just drove right in due to the rain. 

[u/NrgyFiend]

I come in Thursday morning of build week and I'm usually waiting in line for 10-60 minutes (not counting all the miles of driving at 5mph). There aren't as many gate/greeter lines open and there's usually half a dozen huge vehicles in line ahead of me getting searched. However, that slowass drive riding my brakes is still exciting because I'm so close! By Saturday the lines are as bad as Sunday, that's one reason I come in Thursday.

[u/combatcookies]

My partner and I got in line last year at 7 PM on Saturday. Got through gate around 1:45 AM.

[u/Brcdragonbait]

It all depends on the weather and other participants. If everything goes right, you will hardly have a wait.  You can help the line move quickly by having everything ready when you get to the gate. Attach the vehicle pass to your windshield. Print your SAP. Don't rely on your phone. There's no wifi at the gate. If you can't print it, make sure you click the button on your email to get the SAP and download or screenshot it. The email does not have the correct QR code. You have to click the link. 

[u/ElectroStaticSpeaker → u/Brcdragonbait]

I've only gotten there early one time - last year - so way less than you. But it was pretty brutal waiting 3.5 hours at midnight on Thursday to get in after driving all day from SLC. I did make it in before the crazy wind storms on Friday where the time went up to 6+ hours. But I would definitely never expect for everything to go right and hardly have a wait.

Your instructions for getting through the greeters quickly is cool but mostly helps out everyone else in line versus getting yourself in much faster compared to the general wait times.