Chris Calfee Reflects on Record-Setting Trail Run

By: Shihan Wijeyeratne

With our inaugural Tent to Trail Relay just over a month away, we decided to get a little insight from someone who knows a thing or two about running long miles in Pocahontas State Park. Christopher Calfee, an English and Publications teacher at Swift Creek Middle School, ran 318.25 miles in the park in 2005 – without stopping. The record-setting run took him just under four days! Here is his story:

After his first college tennis season, Chris Calfee decided that he needed to get in shape. “I split my shorts going for a ball,” says Calfee. “I realized I had put on some weight, and wanted to improve my fitness for the following season.”

Although reluctant at first, Chris started running. “I didn’t want to call myself a runner,” he says. “But before I knew it, I was in love with the sport.”

Shortly after graduating from Lincoln Memorial University, Calfee took his running to the next level—he completed the 1989 Richmond Marathon. The race was the first milestone (or 26.2-mile stone!) on what was soon to become an extremely impressive running résumé.

In 2005, renowned ultrarunners Dean Karnazes and Pam Reed were garnering national attention with their preparation to attempt 300+ mile runs without sleep. While Karnazes and Reed were focused on securing sponsorship deals and making their endeavors financially fruitful, Calfee’s motivation was very different: he simply wanted to see if he could do it. He gathered friends, family, and other supporters, got authorization from Pocahontas State Park, and prepared to push his body to its limits.

In September 2005, Calfee ran 318.25 miles—what was then the longest recorded run without sleep—in Pocahontas State Park over the course of nearly four days. “It was an almost surreal experience,” he says. “There’s a significant period of time during those few days that I really don’t remember. I was that exhausted.”

Chris started the day running 25-mile loops around the park, but due to a mixture of high temperatures, dehydration, and a slightly overly ambitious pace set by the group he was running with, he had to resort to completing short 1/3 mile circuits until he recovered. Under the close watch of his supporters and medical staff, Calfee began to feel better and moved back to the longer route. “I always had someone else running with me,” he says. “My wife wouldn’t let me go out on the trails unaccompanied.”

Calfee ran all 318.25 miles on the park’s diverse trail system. “Pocahontas is by far my favorite place to run,” he says. “I still do almost all of my training there. I can run around the park for hours and not get bored – it just has so much to offer.”

Although he admits that he wouldn’t want to do something like that again, Calfee’s remarkable running career didn’t end with his historic run in Pocahontas. Calfee has completed over 20 Richmond Marathons, participated in the Ukrop’s Monument Avenue 10k a total of 14 times, and taken part in countless other races ranging in distance from 5k to 150+ miles.

Now, nearly 10 years after his run in Pocahontas, Chris has shifted focus to passing his passion on to the next generation. Calfee is a track and cross country coach at Swift Creek Middle School, where he also teaches English and Publications.  “My goal is to instill an enthusiasm for fitness in all the kids I coach,” he says. “It’s not a results-driven program. My main goal is for the kids to continue staying active into high school and for the rest of their lives.”

With the Tent to Trail Relay just a month away, we asked Chris what he thought of having the event at Pocahontas, a venue that he knows as well as anyone. “I think it’s a great location for the event,” says Calfee. “There’s no shortage of trails, the park is extremely well-maintained, and the views while running are spectacular!”

Chris also had lots of advice to share for putting in long miles (17 miles for participants on 8-person teams, 34 for 4-person teams) over the course of a single day, and for trail running in general. Stay tuned for “Trail Tip Tuesdays”, which will be posted on the Tent to Trail Relay Facebook page every Tuesday between now and the event!

Registration for the first-annual Tent to Trail Relay is available online at www.sportsbackers.org until 11:59 pm on April 14, with a price increase set for March 16.