For an RJ reporter, taking an Uber to F1 was an exercise in patience and delay
It was a daunting plan: hiring an Uber to ride from the Las Vegas Review-Journal office to the Bellagio hours before the start of the Formula One Las Vegas Grand Prix.
I wanted to give my company a break from the $50 special parking fee and really didn’t want to drive in that traffic anyway, especially among motorists charged up about seeing people driving 200 mph.
But I found a driver willing to take me to F1 Ground Zero, the vortex of the need for speed.
I was trying to get to Bellagio by 5 p.m. and set out at 4. I ended up arriving just after 6.
Skilled Uber drivers know all the ins and outs and the shortcuts that can be used to save drive time.
Rule 1 was easy: Stay off Interstate 15. And, because Las Vegas Boulevard closed at 3 p.m. as part of the 3.8-mile Strip circuit, gaining access to Bellagio via the back door – a roadway near the employee parking garage – was essential to success.
Using the Las Vegas Monorail like many of my Review-Journal colleagues was an appealing option, even though I wanted to be on the west side of the Strip. But I decided to go ahead and try Uber.
The route was simple enough — travel south on Valley View Boulevard to Twain Avenue, then east to Frank Sinatra Drive and south some more to the Bellagio rear driveway.
Things went well on Valley View with the first sniff of delay trouble coming after the left turn onto Twain. From there, it was bumper-to-bumper gridlock for four blocks to Frank Sinatra.
Motorists around us were up to their typical Las Vegas tricks. They signaled to turn right from the left lane, blocked the intersection during green lights at Dean Martin Drive and, at one point, a taxi cab crawled up on the sidewalk to speed up to a turn lane.
And the car horns. If you couldn’t get through, the best solution seemed to be to lean on the horn.
“This is where I think it would be helpful for Metro to put some officers on duty to control the intersections,” the driver said. “For big special events like F1, it would be really helpful to have.”
Once we got to Frank Sinatra, things smoothed considerably. It was clear that our route was taking us through traffic destined to get to Caesars Palace, another big venue for race fans.
The last daunting piece of the journey was a left turn across traffic onto the Bellagio driveway. Thankfully, courtesy prevailed and kind motorists driving north on Frank Sinatra yielded to our turn. We were in.
Once on Bellagio property, traffic guides with flashlights were extremely helpful to light the way to drive through the back-of-the-house maze to the ride-share pickup and drop-off location. From there, it was up the escalator to the Bellagio porte-cochere.
Who knows what time I’ll be home Sunday morning and how difficult it may be to get an Uber back to the office when the race ends and everybody is trying to go home at the same time. I’ll sleep for a few hours before heading out to my first-ever Raiders’ game at Allegiant Stadium.
Sunday’s game against the Denver Broncos will mark the first time in Las Vegas’ short history with Formula 1 that a Raiders home game is being played on the same weekend as the race.
I’ve already decided I’m not taking an Uber there. The RTC fan bus will be just fine.
Contact Richard N. Velotta at rvelotta@reviewjournal.com or 702-477-3893. Follow @RickVelotta on X.