AS3 project workflow when using bulkloader in a preloader

Question

I've worked on some recent projects where I load many swfs and other assets in a main site preloader, then access these items later (from other classes, not within the preloader) with something like this:

mc = BulkLoader.getLoader("site").getMovieClip("gallery.swf");

But during development, I cannot test anything that makes calls like this because obviously this depends on the preloader running first so that the "site" bulkloader is defined. So what is the best workflow for this situation? Do I always have to compile the preloader if I want to test anything else? Seems like there's got to be a better way.