Associated Press

Associated Press

ALBUQUERQUE, N.M.

Up mountainsides, through deserts and the wildest of rugged terrain, there was little that could break the serenity or solitude of Micah True as he ran. Only, perhaps, the pounding beat of his heart or the rhythm of his feet as they hit the trail, mile after mile after mile.

For True, running — the pure act of traveling relentlessly long distances — was a passion that needed no justification. To those who knew him well, it also brought forth an intense playfulness in the 58-year-old ultra-marathon runner.

“When he was out on the trail running, it was like someone just rang the school bell and said, ‘Recess.’ It was utter playfulness,” recalled Chris McDougall, a friend of True’s and author of the nonfiction best-seller “Born to Run.”

True’s body was discovered Saturday evening in a remote part of southern New Mexico’s Gila Wilderness. The search began for him days earlier after he failed to return Tuesday from a 12-mile run.

He was found near a cold stream, his legs still in the water and his water bottle next to him, about a mile southeast of the Gila Cliff Dwellings.

The cause of death wasn’t known Sunday. There were no obvious signs of trauma, and State Police Lt. Robert McDonald said it could take a couple of days before authorities know what happened.

But word of his death spread immediately through the community of runners, both amateur and accomplished, some of whom view True as an inspiration, a reason they took up the sport.

Friends and admirers also posted condolences and shared fond memories on social networking sites of a man who, by nearly all of those accounts, was a truly memorable person.