Mavhuthu Dzege The Beer Runner

Over the years there’s been many runners that we’ve wanted to spotlight in Mid Strike Magazine. Some runners simply bring so much joy and inspiration to the running community by simply continuing to do the work to become better not only for themselves but others as well. At Mid Strike our goal is to not only focus on the local running community but also the international community as well. One of those runners comes from Johannesburg and his name is Mavhuthu Dzege otherwise known as The Beer Runner, we’ll get into that later, in the meantime let's get to know Mavhuthu and his run/fitness journey.

MSM: My good brother, anytime we get a chance to chat with runners that are international there's an excitement that we tend to have here as it essentially opens our eyes up to the larger community when it comes to running. For our readers let’s get a small intro into Mavhuthu Dzege. you’ve been one of the most consistent runners that I’ve seen over the years as your commitment to running and the willingness to get better is amazing. What is it that continues to drive you to keep getting better? 

Mavhuthu: I think it’s the hunger, consistency, and the need to enjoy myself on the road that has gotten me to where I am. I keep pushing my body and my head to reach levels that I thought were my limits and the key is to keep going beyond that whilst having a jam, beer, and other fun interactions with fellow runners on the road.

MSM: How did you manage to find running, there's so many other forms of fitness that we could choose from, and I always say to choose running or anyone that chooses running shows that they have a little crazy in them. When did you know that running was something that you wanted to make a lifestyle?

Mavhuthu: Glad you mentioned the crazy - that I am! Hahahahahahahaha! I think more than anything running found me, I used to play football, cricket and rugby which are contact sports and in 2007 I tore my right meniscus and went for surgery, and everything was good. I continued to play football and rugby up until I tore my meniscus again in 2014 and this time around my orthopedic surgeon suggested that I stop with contact sports and take up something “lighter” to help rehabilitate my knee. So, I took up running and little did I know that the bug would hit me hard, I went from 3km to 5, 5km to 10 and once I was good at 10s, a friend of mine suggested we do a 21. So, I went to register, and they didn’t have any 21k entries left, so the crazy man in me said “go for the 42, you do 10ks easily, what’s four 10ks?” So, I registered for the marathon, and I haven’t looked back since then. I think taking a crazy leap from 10 to 42ks really influenced my decision to make running one of my lifestyles. What I endured during that race taught me a lot about running (PS: I keep learning more as we keep running) and the life lessons we get from killing these streets. 

MSM: I'm always interested in running communities outside of the states. Mainly curious to know if we have the same struggles when we first start as black runners where it's hard to find other runners that look like us and or can relate to our struggles. As you started your journey what were some of your struggles early on as a runner in Joburg?