From 1-mile kids runs to Western State Qualifying 100 mile races, Texas’ premiere trail running and ultra community can be found in Trail Racing Over Texas (TROT). The series was founded in 2014 and revitalized by professional athlete, running coach and current TROT Race Director (RD) Call Neff in 2022. With a goal of getting people off the roads and onto the beautiful trails, ranches and State Parks throughout Texas, we tossed a few questions to Cal to learn a bit more about the series, where he comes up with the unique race formats, and why bringing eco-friendly apparel into all aspects of the series just makes sense.

How did you first get involved with Trail Racing Over Texas and what does the year-round series look like now?

When I first moved back down to Houston from Canada I searched out a local trail running club and jumped in their first ever event, a 6 hour run which turned out to be the beginning of TROT. From there I raced on the elite team and provided a lot of the ideas (good and bad) behind the races I now direct today. When the opportunity came to take it over it was the missing piece to my “Ikigai” of being an athlete/coach/race director full-time, allowing me to leave my corporate job as an operations manager and field engineer in oil & gas which gave me a great toolset for event management. 

Aside from a quick glance at all of the amazing races on the TROT schedule, what are some of the intangible things that you want the reader to know about this expansive series of races?

There is something for everyone. All paces, all faces. Just like I found, there is an incredible community behind it all and you won’t have any trouble finding new mentors or friends. With that being said, what we do (running) is hard and we provide a safe space to truly accomplish something in a world where everything else is available at your fingertips.

We know it’s hard to pick just one, but do you have a favorite race or two on the schedule that you look forward to the most? 

One of the goals of TROT is to show people we have incredible outdoor spaces and adventure not far from one of the biggest cities in the country. Mission Tejas State Park is one of those hidden gems and one of my own personal favorite 50km trail races I’ve done. Our Wildflower race in May also has some amazing single track.

There is a great balance between traditional and nontraditional events on the schedule … How do you come up with so many unique events?

The creative side has been an unforeseen major requirement. Sometimes it starts with one of my own runs, exploring a new place, and thinking “this would be a great race”. Other times it’s a spin on the format, trying alternatives to a basic start and finish race to keep it fresh and interesting in an otherwise saturated and fatigued market of “normal” races.

From your professional runner, coach and RD seat, can you share with the reader why sustainability is important to you, your clients, and your race participants?

The next generation deserves to enjoy our outdoors with the same freedom we have now. When I work with the parks, ranches, and our community to put on events I see first hand how delicate all of this is. We’re seeing increasing amounts of severe weather, rules and regulations, poorly managed events, and a decline in volunteerism. If someone doesn’t do this right it could all disappear. Just like I coach or train myself, it’s not about one and done performance, longevity is the goal.

Final question for those that may not have run in Texas before … you have the famously hot Habanero Hundred (100mi, 100K, 50K, Marathon, Half Marathon, 10K & Relay) race coming up, any pre-race guesses on what the temperature will top out at during the event?

Last year we hit an event record of a feels-like temperature of 112 degrees Fahrenheit. This past week we have had similar temperatures and high humidity but latest 10-day forecasts are showing a cool front of 105℉ for our high noon double barrel shotgun start!

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What to learn more and get involved? 

• Check out Recover’s Be The Impact Podcast with Cal Neff of Trail Racing Over Texas in Episode #53 HERE
• Support Trail Racing Over Texas in person by participating or volunteering HERE
• Support Trail Racing Over Texas from afar by purchasing TROT merch through our collaborative Zero Waste Online Store HERE
• Check out Cal Neff's website HERE