Running, my second job and passion...

Sunday, November 30, 2025

POST @ IBM: a green partnership in Coyote Valley

October is our Month of Giving at IBM. Among the local charities we are partnering with, it was my pleasure to see us hosting POST, the Peninsula Open Space Trust. And, even more satisfying, seeing IBMers stop by the booth to hear more about the amazing impact this organization have had on the preservation of our green hills and local wildlife for now almost 50 years (see my post about the 40th anniversary in 2017, and that IBM-supported conference along POST and the Ohlone tribe in 2022). IBM also matches donations employees make to POST!

Although I've been supporting POST for 2 decades, I still learned a big deal about their challenges and work thanks to a masterful presentation from their Director of Customer Engagement, Mark Medeiros. While there are many other trusts even in our area, no wonder why POST is regarded as a visionary and leading land trust across the country!

Coyote Valley represents a unique corridor between the two ranges forming our very own Silicon Valley, the Santa Cruz Mountains and Peninsula on the West side, and the Diablo range on the East. Living in a earthquake area, we can also named the corresponding faults: San Andrea and Hayward.

Now, corridor may be a more convoluted word than what it looks. I would have assumed that a straight line along Bailey Avenue for instance would be the easiest way to facilitate back and forth migrations and passage between both ranges. But that would make specialists gaggle as that would be way over simplifying Mother Nature, which likes to follow water sheds in particular. (Credit: illustration from Haley Grunloh, POST page.)

In addition to the water sheds winding through the valley, there are 3 major physical hurdles which have to be considered, a system called the triple barrier. Counter-intuitive is that, thanks to its numerous underpasses, the busy Highway 101 isn't the most challenging of the three but Monterey Highway with its surface concrete divider. Followed by the rail track. (Credit: illustration from Haley Grunloh, POST page.)

There has been decades of work to protect Coyote Valley between the key partners including the City of San Jose, the Santa Clara Country, the Open Space Authority. And POST.

At least we can celebrate and be grateful that the planned expansion of commercial development across Coyote Valley, in the 70s and 80s, turned to a flop and allowed farmers to stay around. Incidentally, as we tease ourselves, that left us, our IBM Silicon Valley Lab campus, in the middle of nowhere!

Here is a selection of great resources to learn more about the challenges and progress on that Coyote Valley matter:

Now, a burning question all IBMers had on their mind: as the decision has been made and publicly announced, to close the renowned Almaden IBM Research Center (ARC), relocating hundreds of eminent researchers to the site on the other side of the hill, Silicon Valley Lab (SVL), on Bailey Avenue, what is going to happen to this landmark site? Will that be an opportunity to transfer this major open area into the local pool of preserved lands? As opposed to selling it for tenths of millions of dollars of income and profit... A challenging dilemma... And a big unknown for non-insiders...

Bottom line, the protection of Coyote Valley, while in progress, will likely take several more decades to set a safe and sustainable corridor for wildlife to reclaim their original passage to roam between the two ranges. POST is close to turn 50 and is the perfect partner to think and act long term to restore nature's rights in and around our buzzing Silicon Valley. A model for the World!

Silicon Valley Turkey Trot: some speed for a change!

4 days after logging 105 miles at the Fat Ox 24-hour Road Nationals, it was time to lace my running shoes again. I didn't feel fully recovered but you can't control these back to back dates. With the souvenir of an injury on that course 7 years ago (fissure of hamstring tendon), my main goal this Thursday morning was to play it safe. Yet, if I felt recovered enough, see how close I could get to 40 minutes, short of approaching my best times, pre-injury.

With 17 consecutive participations, this has become my own personal 10K benchmark (that was my 63rd 10K race but I still have more 50K races in my log, at 84). Actually, my first participation was the elite 5K which was part of our USATF Pacific Association Road Grand Prix back then, and I clocked 16:34. I then ran the 10K distance every year: 35:05, 35:20, 35:06, 36:09, 35:41, 35:49, 36:10, 34:57, 35:51, 35:51, 41:34 (still suffering from the 2018 injury), 40:17 (2020 virtual edition on an improvised course in some French countryside), 38:51, 37:45, 39:55, 39:26 (post 7-month break after meniscus tear). Looking back at this series (all race reports under the Turkey Trot tag), it clearly shows that I never fully recovered from the 2018 injury. And now having to rebuild after last year, not to mention handle the years which pass...

As I mentioned, my legs still felt tired from last weekend's ultra distance. I went for a 1.5-mile warm-up on the course then found a spot 4 layers behind the start line. Among runners who seemed to be at the front mostly for the pictures and selfies so I paid extra attention not to trip when we were sent off.

With the joint start of the 5 and 10K, with all the competitive runners, the kids and the occasional runners who know less about pacing, the race starts really fast. I used to stick close to the front but not anymore and the hundreds of runners at the front felt a bit overwhelming. Two tenth of a mile after the start I glanced at my GPS to get a sense of the pace: dang, it was still on the mode "Wrist hear rate disabled, Start now?" Shoot, I had forgotten the switch that mode back after last weekend's 24-hour, when I switched it off to save the battery so the GPS battery and recording could last 24 hours. Dude, yes, please start!

With that, I missed my split time at the 1-mile mark but got a 6:27 shortly after. Not too bad but it wasn't going to get me under 40 minutes. Our friend Nathalie was volunteering again at the first aid station in Japan Town, around 1.5 mile, and got a couple of shots.

As you can see, I was still in a pack, in good company. The good news though was that my glutes, really tight in the first half mile, had now loosen up. Bring it on!

That good sensation allowed me to pick the pace up a bit, passing a few runners and still being passed by others. That got my second split down to 6:23. Shortly after I recall passing a young girl with a turkey hat and shoes which were making noise like carbon plates. Is that possible 12-year old kids have carbon plate shoes already? Maybe I need to give it a try...

Most of the runners turn left toward the 5K finish but there were still quite a few on the 10K. My third split was similar, at 6:24.

On the 4th mile, after turning around the SAP Center, there is a small did to pass under the rail track, that did cost me one second, for a 6:25 minute split. However, in that section, one runner caught up with me only to stay just behind, in my stride, something I don't really like. That got me to pick up the pace again, this time clocking 6:15 for the 5th mile, while navigating the Emory/Myrtle/University turnaround before returning on The Alameda, aka 82.

Breathing was good, legs felt good, plus the motivation of cross the rest of the pack, including getting some verbal encouragements from my friends (Tanguy then Igor), I went all in to the finish. I only discovered afterwards that I ran mile in 6:12, what a god surprise!

Then, approaching the finish line I saw the clock displaying seconds: 39:50, 51, 52, ... My recollection was that I crossed the finish line in 39:58 but I was awarded 39:56, I will take it! My last 10Ks were 40:36 last December at the DoDouble in Palo Alto, and 40:30 at Trailblazer in September, it feels good to break 40' again! Oh wait, 2 days later and I realize that I actually did better. I was so focused on 40 minutes, I misread the clock while at full speed, it was actually 38:56, even better! And maybe the course was on the short side, as some others reported, but still, that was the same distance for all.

That was good enough for 3rd in my age group this year again. Second was Raymond Rodriguez, 64, in 38:20. As for the first place in our age group, Thomas Tayeri won again in a blazing time of 36:23, this is really fast. This is actually a 90.01% age grade, or an equivalent of 29:19.7, World class/level! In comparison mine was 84.12% or 31:23, not too far from today's winning time of 31:13 (Brian Wyatt from La Jolla).

Proud of Agnès for finishing 5th of 363 in her age group!

But the most important measure for this event is the number of registrants and the money raised for local charities. In the spirit of the race founders, 21 years ago, Carl and Leslee Guardino.

23,000 registrants this year, for an event under the direction of Chris Weiler, Race Director at the Silicon Valley Leadership Group Foundation (in yellow jacket).

We were quite lucky with the weather again this year. It was chilly in the shade of the buildings but really nice in the sun, in the middle of the festival area. Perfect place to meet friends, at least for those making the effort to find others among thousands. Here with Tanguy, waiting for Rosalie and Virginie.