A method of system access from a wireless device to a wireless network, the network having a plurality of base stations includes the steps of: selecting at least one reverse link cost metric from a list of predetermined reverse link cost metrics; determining a reverse link cost according to the selected at least one reverse link cost metric; selecting a candidate base station from the plurality of base stations; sending a probe signal at the reverse link cost to the candidate base station; waiting for a response from the candidate base station within a timeout period; and repeating steps until timeout, or until the condition that a response is received from at least one candidate base station so that at least one candidate base station can be used to provide system access from the wireless device to the wireless network.