Philip Kreycik Search Revived Over The Weekend To No Avail

PLEASANTON, CA — Search and rescue officials took to Pleasanton Ridge Regional Park Saturday to resume a targeted search for Philip Kreycik, 37, of Berkeley, but "no significant evidence was recovered from the area," Pleasanton police said.

Volunteers will continue to search for the husband, father of two and ultramarathon runner who was reported missing about three weeks ago after failing to return from what was supposed to be an hourlong run in the park.

"We are still going strong and determined to bring Philip home to his family," said volunteer search coordinator Betsy Everett on the Find Philip Kreycik Facebook page, which has ballooned to include some 12,600 members.

Volunteers packed up Sunday their base camp at Foothill High School and will be looking for a new site as back-to-school looms for the Pleasanton Unified School District, Everett said. They hope to find an indoor location with power and Wi-Fi, she said.

Everett also thanked those who donated food, drinks, equipment and supplies in the search efforts. Inklings Cafe, Costco, Mr. Pickles, Porky's Pizza, Pizza Bello, Safeway, Lucky California, Gene's Fine Foods, Raley's and Grocery Outlet were among the local stores and eateries that stepped up to feed hundreds of searchers last month.

"Every single grocery store in Pleasanton ... and every single place I called out to said, 'Yes,' whatever we needed," Sandy Schneider, who has helped coordinate the community-led search, told Patch. "I'm really proud of my community. I think we've done everything we possibly can do. The family is extremely grateful."

Some 1,300 donors raised $83,000 as of Monday morning through an online crowdfunding campaign on GoFundMe. The money was meant to benefit search efforts and help Kreycik's family.

Kreycik reportedly left his phone in his car on July 10, the day he went missing, and is believed to have embarked on a run through a trail he had mapped on his phone. His car was found parked at the Moller Ranch staging area.

Chris Thoburn, Kreycik's longtime running friend, said last week in an online Q&A that Kreycik often left for a run without his phone and preferred not to carry much. Evidence indicated that Kreycik never made it out of the park, Thoburn said. Kreycik texted his wife from the trailhead, and he was not captured by surveillance cameras near exit points.

Thoburn speculated that Kreycik likely fell victim to heat exhaustion, as he rarely ran in temperatures higher than 80 degrees. Triple-digit temperatures struck the East Bay on the day of his disappearance. Heat exhaustion can cause runners to make irrational decisions, Thoburn said, and his friend may have wandered into a ravine or shortcut in search of shade.

The search has been difficult and unprecedented in Alameda County, where missing people are generally found within a day, said Ron Seitz, volunteer chief of Alameda County's search and rescue unit, at a news conference last week. Seitz added that the case is especially unusual as Pleasanton Ridge is usually heavily trafficked, making it likely that a passerby could have offered help.

"He's very strong," Sandy Schneider, who has helped coordinate the community-led search, previously told Patch. "And he's got a very strong reason to come home for his kids. We know he's fighting for whichever way he can to get home."

Searchers for three weeks have endured the threat of mountain lions and rattlesnakes, blazing heat and rough terrain by foot, horse, plane, e-bike and off-road vehicles, using search dogs, drones and heat-detecting technology to look for signs of him.

"A hidden part [of helping] that I think people realize, but it's often less recognized, is that it makes this incredibly lonely journey feel less alone," Kreycik's wife, Jen Yao, told Tom Wooten, a Harvard University classmate of Kreycik's who also helped organize search efforts.

Kreycik is described as white with a thin build and brown hair and eyes. Kreycik is a fit and friendly hiker and runner, a legendary outdoorsman who's well-known in the Bay Area and Harvard University community for his "huge, jaw-dropping adventures," Wooten previously told Patch. Kreycik works as a strategic analyst of clean energy transportation at Pacific Gas & Electric Co., according to his LinkedIn profile.

Anyone who wants to volunteer can check the Find Philip Kreycik Facebook page for updates and to get in touch with organizers. Those who may have information on Kreycik's whereabouts were urged to contact Pleasanton police by calling the tip line at 925-931-5107 or emailing tip@cityofpleasantonca.gov.

— Patch Editor Kat Schuster contributed to this report

GoFundMe is a Patch promotional partner.

Read more:

• Pleasanton Officials Resume Search For Philip Kreycik
• Missing Hiker: $80K Raised For Family, Friend Shares New Details
• Missing Runner: 1K Donate To Search Efforts, Family
• Pleasanton Locals Drive Search For Missing Runner Philip Kreycik
• Officials Scale Back Search As It Enters Day 6
• Missing Pleasanton Hiker Either Incapacitated Or Gone: Officials
• Volunteers Sought As Search For Philip Kreycik Continues