IF YOU GO
What: Screening of “Run Free: The True Story of Caballo Blanco”When: Tuesday at 7 p.m.Where: The Camp House, 149 East M.L. King Blvd.Cost: $15 at the door or $12 in advance at www.imathlete.com/events/runfree
An award-winning documentary on a legendary ultra runner is screening in Chattanooga this week.
"Run Free: The True Story of Caballo Blanco" is coming to the Camp House at 7 p.m. Tuesday in an event sponsored by Rock/Creek and RootsRated.
The 90-minute film features the story of Micah True, the creator of northern Mexico's 50-mile Copper Canyon Ultra-Marathon, and his unique relationship with the Tarahumara people, a group of American Indians the annual race celebrates.
True, who was better known as "Caballo Blanco," disappeared while running in the Gila Wilderness of New Mexico after the 2012 Copper Canyon Ultra-Marathon. He was found dead several days later, but his unique story of living and running with the Tarahumara people lives on through the documentary.
He was also focal point of the 2011 best-selling book, "Born to Run," which is being adapted into a movie. Renowned actor Matthew McConaughey is scheduled to portray True in that film.
"He was one of those people that was just really special, one of those genuinely interesting people who took an interest in you," said RootsRated co-founder Mark McKnight, who recalled running with True after they met at a Utah trade show in 2010. "He wanted everyone to run until the day [they] died, like he did."
McKnight helped organize Tuesday's screening, which is $12 in advance and $15 at the door. A portion of the proceeds will benefit Friends of the Running People, a nonprofit agency founded by True to preserve Tarahumara culture, according to a news release.
The documentary was filmed in the weeks leading up to the 2012 race that preceded True's disappearance. It focuses on True's passion for running and the Tarahumara people. The California native was 58 when he died. The documentary won several film awards in 2015 and was given a silver medal in the Spotlight Documentary Film Awards, which ranked it one of the world's 250 best documentaries of the year.
"When he started this race, there were six runners, and the last year of his life there were 700 people at this race," said Maria Walton, the film's executive producer and True's girlfriend at the time of his death. "He didn't seek for it to grow in a commercial way, but he was proud that his message inspired people to get outside and run free."
Contact staff writer David Cobb at dcobb@timesfreepress.com or 423-757-6249.