The memorial service for Micah True in a lot of ways resembled the man himself — simple and low-key. And, of course, there was running involved.

A group of about 200 people gathered Friday evening at Chautauqua to pay tribute to True, 58, a Boulder ultrarunner who rose to fame when he was featured in the best-selling book “Born to Run.”

True’s body was found in New Mexico’s Gila wilderness March 31, five days after going out on a run. The coroner hasn’t ruled on the cause of his death.

After a run up Flagstaff Mountain on Friday, True’s friends gathered on the Chautauqua lawn to share stories about the man known as “Caballo Blanco,” a nickname — meaning “white horse” — that True got from children in Guatemala who saw him running in their village years ago.

“He was the toughest man I knew,” said Chris Labbe, who ran in the Copper Canyon Ultra Marathon, a 50-plus-mile extreme race in Urique, Mexico, that True directed.

“My outlook on life started to change after that race,” Labbe said. “The people down there changed me. It wasn’t just Micah, but the people Micah brought together. You just had to be humbled by the way he lived.”

True became a legend in the running community after author Chris McDougall featured him in “Born to Run,” which followed the Tarahumara Indians, an isolated tribe known for their long, grueling runs. True trained with the Tarahumara.

“I think he was proud of (the book), but because it brought awareness of the Tarahumara,” said True’s girlfriend, Maria Walton.

Reading the book in Arizona, Walton remembered being fascinated by the “goofy character” running through the desert and emailed True looking for running tips. An online relationship formed, and eventually True convinced her to come out to Colorado.

“He would be anybody’s friend,” she said. “He would talk to anyone.”

Walton said True had very little in the way of money, but what he did have he spent trying to help others. She recalled stories of True reaching into his own pocket to feed the Tarahumara people before races and getting blankets for them from local doctors in Mexico.

“These are the stories he never posted on his Facebook,” she said. “These are the stories he never told reporters, and he would be upset I’m telling them now. He was a simple man with a simple vision: ‘Want to run? Let’s go.'”

Tyler Pomasello, who also ran in the Copper Canyon Ultra Marathon, said the race and what it did for the Tarahumara community will always be a part of True’s legacy.

“He was so famous outside the canyon, but you could still see how much he cared about those people,” Pomasello said.

“There was a lot more to Micah than running,” said friend Dan Bowers. “He was a great guy, and I’m going to miss him dearly. Whenever you’re running on Mesa Trail, and you feel the breeze at your back, that’s Caballo. He is always with us.”

Contact Camera Staff Writer Mitchell Byars at 303-473-1329 or byarsm@dailycamera.com.