Originally Posted by
kwalder
I didn't "check in " for the later flight for two reasons. One, the RNO gate agents were still calling people to rebook AND asking others NOT to approach them and "interrup" their rebooking process. So I was trying to be a good soldier. Second, it remained unclear at the time which of the two flights I was booked/protected on would leave earlier, so I wanted to go out on the first flight.
So it was when I told the RNO agents that 1k had protected me, that they essentially told me I was out of luck.
The "good soldier" idea would have worked, had you not deviated from what they were doing. Presumably they were going through the flight and rebooking people. You called UA (which is what you're entitled to do, and personally what I would have done as well), but by doing so, you deviated from the process the RNO agents were referring to. So their instructions did not apply to you.
I have a feeling that when you finally approached the agents, the departure for the other flight had been finalized, and since you had not "checked in," you were not permitted on the flight.