Found Deceased CA - Philip Kreycik, 37, Pleasanton Ridge Regional Park, 10 Jul 2021

[DeDee]

I much prefer my fairly happy ending with Philip willingly walking away opposed to his friend stating they'll bring in cadaver dogs now. Far too much finality for me.

In their first text exchange that was shared, at 1:23pm, PK states he has the weekend free for two runs since Jen's parents' are with their two babies. PK cannot commit to camping in Tahoe due to their two babies [at 5:23pm.] At 9:31am, Philip writes that he will be back on kid duty once he picks up the family.

I'm sure it's innocuous but he does mention not being able to do stuff bc they have two children. KP says he thinks it'd be fun to run somewhere he normally would not go.

Chris Thoburn 7/23 AMA Q&A Responses

 

[Speculaytor]

In the AMA, Chris claimed to have been involved in the search for Lucas too, small world.

No way, really?

 

[ttcRider]

I wonder if he was waiting at the trail head for someone to pick him up and thats why the dogs couldnt trace his scent any further than that? Just thinking.

 

[distracted]

In the AMA, Chris claimed to have been involved in the search for Lucas too, small world.

Maybe I've watched too many episodes of CSI because that seems odd.

 

[BoyThatsWeird]

I much prefer my fairly happy ending with Philip willingly walking away opposed to his friend stating they'll bring in cadaver dogs now. Far too much finality for me.

In their first text exchange that was shared, at 1:23pm, PK states he has the weekend free for two runs since Jen's parents' are with their two babies. PK cannot commit to camping in Tahoe due to their two babies [at 5:23pm.] At 9:31am, Philip writes that he will be back on kid duty once he picks up the family.

I'm sure it's innocuous but he does mention not being able to do stuff bc they have two children. KP says he thinks it'd be fun to run somewhere he normally would not go.

Chris Thoburn 7/23 AMA Q&A Responses
View attachment 306088

Hi,

Check the dates on the texts. They're about two different weekends.

 

[xxxyyyzzz]

<modsnip: Quoted post was removed>

In the AMA, Chris claimed to have been involved in the search for Lucas too, small world.

Nothing bizarre here besides the East Bay trail running scene is a bit of a small world. CT is a strong member of the community and runs with multiple people across different clubs, as we all do really. I am personally shocked that I never ran with Philip - maybe I have and just didn't know it. But most of us that have logged thousands of miles on these trails each year at least know each other peripherally, and know many folks very well.

And just a quick thought in regard to the texts and how well they knew each other, etc.... I will say that the running community is a bit unique in that there are many people that I have spent hours and hours (Days cumulatively really) running with but have never been to their house, met their partners, seen their kids, etc. I feel that I know them quite well after hours together on a trail, but I know absolutely zero about many sectors of their life. It's not weird at all for me to text somebody and try to grab a run together and then not talk to them for 3-4 weeks until we try it again. It's just kind of the way the trail social scene works.

Finally, regarding the clothes he was wearing, did he change, etc. I would just say when you run every day from different places you do things differently sometimes. Runners are definitely not afraid to change in the car or in the parking lot, I often wear street clothes if I drive to a run and then put on my shorts when I get to the parking lot (or even have them under my street pants or shirt). Sometimes I drive home in dirty clothes, sometimes I might change before leaving. It depends on the day, the time, the sweat, etc. Just seeing lots of speculation on Philip's change of clothes which might be useful but also might just be nothing.

My opinions only of course. Right now I am hoping he is found/recovered wherever he is so the family and friends can get some closure, as tragic as the outcome of Lucas was it was certainly nice to be able to transition to a mourning process at some point.

 

[Beekarina]

I am not sure what the suspicion about the friend is leading to? Are people feeling he is involved in the disappearance somehow?

I'm just exploring bits that stand out to me as unusual or interesting. Personally, I have no idea or strong theory here. I am leaning a bit towards he left the park, either voluntarily or otherwise, but that is only based on my gut impression of what I have seen of the search.

I mentioned a page or two back how I lost a family member in a very public way, and shared how it included some often puzzling behavior from that person's friends. It was just their way of processing/personality. That may be the case here too with CT. He could simply be an action person who cannot sit there and wait and is doing anything and everything he can think of--i.e. an AMA.

 

[distracted]

Yup, it's very similar unfortunately. In hindsight I wish we had mobilized a much bigger search on the shoreline for Lucas - we had one day were we segmented about 13 miles of coast and looked, but nobody actually looked where his body was finally recovered. We focused most of our time on trails as well hoping that he had wandered up to the hills instead. However Philip's case has infinitely more media and LE presence - for Lucas there was basically one day LE searched down by the marina and then they were essentially done. No dogs, no drones, no planes....



Nothing bizarre here besides the East Bay trail running scene is a bit of a small world. CT is a strong member of the community and runs with multiple people across different clubs, as we all do really. I am personally shocked that I never ran with Philip - maybe I have and just didn't know it. But most of us that have logged thousands of miles on these trails each year at least know each other peripherally, and know many folks very well.

And just a quick thought in regard to the texts and how well they knew each other, etc.... I will say that the running community is a bit unique in that there are many people that I have spent hours and hours (Days cumulatively really) running with but have never been to their house, met their partners, seen their kids, etc. I feel that I know them quite well after hours together on a trail, but I know absolutely zero about many sectors of their life. It's not weird at all for me to text somebody and try to grab a run together and then not talk to them for 3-4 weeks until we try it again. It's just kind of the way the trail social scene works.

Finally, regarding the clothes he was wearing, did he change, etc. I would just say when you run every day from different places you do things differently sometimes. Runners are definitely not afraid to change in the car or in the parking lot, I often wear street clothes if I drive to a run and then put on my shorts when I get to the parking lot (or even have them under my street pants or shirt). Sometimes I drive home in dirty clothes, sometimes I might change before leaving. It depends on the day, the time, the sweat, etc. Just seeing lots of speculation on Philip's change of clothes which might be useful but also might just be nothing.

My opinions only of course. Right now I am hoping he is found/recovered wherever he is so the family and friends can get some closure, as tragic as the outcome of Lucas was it was certainly nice to be able to transition to a mourning process at some point.

Any idea what it means that the dogs lost his scent at the trailhead?

 

[Curious_in_NC]

Is that shoe print (it's only 1, taken from different angles) actually Philips?

Has it been positively forensically matched by LE to the Saucony shoes he was wearing?

I don't see how they can confirm a match. There's no reference to confirm the shoe size and it's hard to know if other volunteer searchers or trail users might have worn similar shoes. Despite CT's best intentions, I don't think LE would consider this as confirmatory evidence.

 

[Protectwomenandgirls]

I don't see how they can confirm a match. There's no reference to confirm the shoe size and it's hard to know if other volunteer searchers or trail users might have worn similar shoes. Despite CT's best intentions, I don't think LE would consider this as confirmatory evidence.

It would be nice to receive clarification re: if the shoe print was a definite match or not. If not, then no evidence he was ever actually in the park?

 

[annpats]

Philip wasn't an ultra runner due to the smaller distances he did, nor was he an adventure runner, as his Strava records indicate he stuck to the same regular trails he knew around Berkeley.

This was the 2nd time he went to this trail, the 1st time was only the previous evening (!!) when he ran with 2 others, one of whom he didn't know.

So it's out of character to not only do 2 runs in over 100°F within just 24 hours, but also to go back to that trail (that was out of his way) and still new to him.

He seemed desperate to get another run in before his wife & child came back from his in-laws.

In fact, he didn't even park at the correct place for that trail, did he?

I think he got terribly lost, kept going, got more lost, became dehydrated, sought shade somewhere, fell or lost consciousness and is under foliage or undergrowth somewhere. And I don't think it took very long for that to happen.

Sadly, I think it was a case of not being prepared enough. He was too tired, physically depleted already, had no water, no phone, a searingly hot day, a new trail, and short of time.....

MOO.

 

[Beekarina]

This is interesting: “Looking for something hard to find”: Friend speaks out on mystifying disappearance of runner Philip Kreycik - The San Francisco Times

"Kreycik, through CCTV at a UPS store, was spotted entering and leaving the lot. The same was also seen through the traffic cameras and the car’s FastTrak."

I did not realize FastTrak was used as a form of locating device? It has been several years since I have had one on my vehicle, as I now live rurally, but I wonder if it shows any stops aside from the UPS store and the park?

I also personally did not realize how short the time was from PK parking his car at the trail and calling his wife (11am) , calling to say he would go for a run lasting abut an hour, and her reporting him as missing (2pm) He would still have to travel to where she was, and allowing for a stop maybe to grab a drink, use facilities anything like that? She must have been very concerned about the heat.

 

[Wendyb1063]

Thanks for the information about the Bay area trail running community; this is helpful to know. The friend who posted the AMA is more than likely totally sincere, and his efforts to try to find PK are heroic and very noble. Those of us on Websleuths tend to look at the information we have (in this case, quite limited) and try to make things fit together in some way. We analyze patterns, similarities to other cases, odd coincidences, and assess others' actions against what we or those we know would do. There are people with many different experiences and expertise in different areas, and that strengthens the group.

My questions of the moment: I wonder if PK followed the Lucas Horan case at all. Also, if PK's body was in the area that has already been searched, what are the odds that cadaver dogs would find it? And the earlier dogs that looked for Lucas lost the scent early: how reliable was their initial scent signal? Might that have been a false positive signal? Do we know if the police are now looking into PK's digital footprint?

My heart is breaking for his family. I cannot imagine their pain.

 

[LifeIsAMystery]

No way, really?

All 3 were very involved in the Bay area running community. He talks about that search in the AMA and how it gave him a base in using the running app to track searches. Hope this one has a happier outcome.

 

[Auntie Cipation]

I did not realize FastTrak was used as a form of locating device? It has been several years since I have had one on my vehicle, as I now live rurally, but I wonder if it shows any stops aside from the UPS store and the park?

My impression of Fastrak is that the tag on the vehicle doesn't actually track anything, rather it is "registered" via camera when the vehicle goes past a Fastrak "point" such as a toll bridge or toll lane.

One tidbit: Fastrak removed bridge toll takers due to covid and now every car (without a Fastrak tag) that passes a toll spot gets a bill in the mail. This hasn't yet reverted back as far as I know (I live rurally but visit the Bay Area on occasion, was last there earlier this month, before Philip went missing).

So I assume the mention means Fastrak cameras caught Philip's car at various toll locations along his way, whether he has a Fastrak tag or not.

 

[LifeIsAMystery]

Philip wasn't an ultra runner due to the smaller distances he did, nor was he an adventure runner, as his Strava records indicate he stuck to the same regular trails he knew around Berkeley.

This was the 2nd time he went to this trail, the 1st time was only the previous evening (!!) when he ran with 2 others, one of whom he didn't know.

So it's out of character to not only do 2 runs in over 100°F within just 24 hours, but also to go back to that trail (that was out of his way) and still new to him.

He seemed desperate to get another run in before his wife & child came back from his in-laws.

In fact, he didn't even park at the correct place for that trail, did he?

I think he got terribly lost, kept going, got more lost, became dehydrated, sought shade somewhere, fell or lost consciousness and is under foliage or undergrowth somewhere. And I don't think it took very long for that to happen.

Sadly, I think it was a case of not being prepared enough. He was too tired, physically depleted already, had no water, no phone, a searingly hot day, a new trail, and short of time.....

MOO.

The article that said he ran there on Friday was later corrected. On Friday he ran with CT and a 3rd in Oakland.

 

[Auntie Cipation]

Regarding the texting between PK and his wife, where she asked his ETA and he replied "12:35" -- someone said there was a phone call following that text? Between him and wife? Do we know that for sure?

I'm just thinking about how texts are not proof of who is sending the text, only proof his phone was used, and wondering when is the last time PK's wife physically saw him (when did she leave for Stockton?) or spoke to him on the phone?

 

[Curious_in_NC]

Philip wasn't an ultra runner due to the smaller distances he did, nor was he an adventure runner, as his Strava records indicate he stuck to the same regular trails he knew around Berkeley.
MOO.

That's true. There doesn't seem to be any record of him entering any ultra running events, at least since moving to the Bay area. His recent running looks like mostly 6-12 mile trail routes in the hills east of Berkeley. That said, they nearly all had ~1500 feet elevation gain and 6-7 minute GAP (grade adjusted pace). That's not unlike the type of training effort an ultra runner might do. He just didn't do any "long" runs like they would have done. I think he just enjoyed running fast up and down hills when he had the opportunity.

This was the 2nd time he went to this trail, the 1st time was only the previous evening (!!) when he ran with 2 others, one of whom he didn't know.
MOO.

The news reports that erroneously said he was on the same trail the previous evening have since been corrected. They created a lot of confusion.

 

[Cuoco7]

Since they have completed the highway, there are many FastTrak options on the 580 that enable you to jump in and out of the toll lanes.
Also, something that came to mind a bit ago is there is the BART transit system that runs directly from this area to many cities in the Bay Area. It can take you anywhere in SF or directly to SFO as well as north and south east bay as well.
The Pleasanton station is just a few miles away from the trail. It's a quick and easy way to get around.

System Map | bart.gov

 

[cvaldez1975]

What is AMA?

ask me anything