Rio Rancho Events Center — Attraction in Rio Rancho

We attended a High School Wrestling event there this past weekend. While the Event Center was a good choice for the event, size-wise, the Event Center coordinated access to this event terribly. I've been traveling around the state and country to various high school wrestling events, and the Rio Rancho Events Center has been the absolute worst. For example: We were given the option to purchase tickets, in advance, online through TicketMaster. Hoping to save time on entry, we purchased our tickets, in advance, through TicketMaster. While I have been able to download tickets from TicketMaster for other events previously, I could not download tickets for this particular event as my only option for picking up my tickets was at "Will Call". This means, I had to show up to the Event, find the Will Call window, get my tickets, then stand in line to actually get in. When we showed up to the event, there were several terribly long lines with no signs directing anyone where to go for the Will Call Window. Even when you attempted to trace the lines, the windows had no visible signage directing people which line was which. These lines were so long, that they extended dangerously into the middle of an active parking lot. After seeing no signage, I asked other event attendees where the Will Call Window was. Several people didn't know and others didn't even know if the line they were standing in was the correct line! After standing in one of the lines, we learned from someone who was "passing the word pack", which line was the Will Call line. When I looked, I could see the Will Call line was (at least) 100 yards long! Keep in mind, these people had purchased tickets IN ADVANCE! I stood in this line for over an hour. While standing in line, I could see the Ticket purchasing line (next to us) was going faster than the Will Call line was! What was the point in purchasing tickets in advance? While standing in line, I could hear other event attendees complaining how disorganized it was. A lady behind me told me she has attended music concerts here and she's always been able to buy tickets online and walk right in, yet for this event, we had to pick up our tickets at a Will Call window. Nothing short of piss poor management. Then, after we picked up our tickets, we had to stand in another line to actually get into the Event and this line was so long that it extended dangerously into the middle of an active parking lot!!! From the time we arrived, to our actual entrance into the venue, we probably stood in line for over 2 hours. Then as we stood in line, people kept getting turned away for having water bottles, coffee cups, small back packs...which ALL are entirely reasonable for people to bring for an event that goes from 10am to 9pm at night! I can understand people not being allowed to bring such items for an event that lasts a couple hours, but a whole day event? In summary, the Event Center was well sized, but event entry management was an...

Saw Mercy Me and their guest bands. Sitting in section 216, we had a good view of the stage, but the graphics and screens were hard to see. Specifically, the side screens interfered with the main screen.

The sound system is average and much of the music and voices seemed muddied, especially on what Bart calls "the bigger songs." This was true for all three groups that performed. Better acoustic engineering and blending would help.

The placing of merch booths is problematic - they invite congestion in the main concourse, especially following performances. The concourse is further congested by noon - directed exits. As a result, there are two streams of people moving in opposite directions, congested by merch tables, people waiting for people in the bathrooms, and groups of people just stopped. Not terrible (this is a relatively small venue), but better planning would improve the experience.

Parking, and the post-show exit wasn't bad. I would recommend mandatory exit paths for the various parking areas - directed north and west toward Unser for the north lots, and south and east toward Broadmoor for the south lots. Even so, the post - show exit was painless. You might consider dedicated parking lots identified by seating areas (everyone sitting on the north side, parks on the north side, enters on the north side, and leaves via Unser).

Entrance to the venue needs to be improved - perhaps dedicated entrances by seating section. The venue is too small to have the outside lines experienced.

Concession lines are too long - maybe requiring a minimum of three cashiers each would help.

Seats are comfortable, if a bit cramped, lighting is good, and the restrooms are clean and functional.

Cell reception is terrible - practically nonexistent.

This is a decent, and for us convenient venue. Thank you for making...

The Santa Ana Star Center is by far the worst venue I have ever been to for a large-scale event. My problem began when I bought tickets the day they came available and even within the first ten minutes of availability. There was no way to figure out more than where a particular section was. I chose "best available" and it turns out that I was in the very back of the middle section with people who bought their tickets a whole two months after me! So strike one, their online ticket purchasing sucks! A better labeled seating chart on the website could have helped me realize the problem earlier and I would have been able to bring my issue to someone that might have fixed my problem. The next problem I had was the seating. I'm not a small guy and I'm six and a half feet tall. The seats are super small and shoved right next to each other. Then the event didn't start on time. The start time came and went and thirty minutes later the lights finally dim. You know there's a problem when the performer makes a comment about the even starting really late. I was cramped and sore all the way through the entire show. Finally, I got to stand up at the end and head to my car, that when we came across the incompetent people directing traffic. That was a fiasco by itself. While the event itself was great, the elements surrounding it and my comfort during will likely prevent me from ever attending anything else there in the future. I have been to lots and lots of venues for a multitude of different events in my lifetime and this was the worst. I am so disappointed to find this out, because it is so close to where I live and I am one who likes to frequent...