Modern Athlete Magazine Issue 61, August 2014 | Page 22

Ma balancing act

Directing
At this year’s Comrades, Masterchef SA and
Survivor content producer Enver Samuel was
the last runner to claim a coveted Bill Rowan
medal when he crossed the finish line in 8:59:59.
The avid endurance junkie chats about fitting
in training in his usual 18-hour shoot days, and
getting by with minimal mileage.

Enver on course for that sub-9 finish.

– BY LAUREN VAN DER VYVER

Images: Jetline Action Photo & Courtesy Enver Samuel

From meeting Madiba in
Qunu to filming a day in the
life of running legend Haile
Gebrselassie, Enver has met
some of the world’s most
celebrated icons while producing
and directing TV shows since
1994. As a freelance filmmaker, he lives for that
next call for work, and his working hours are
often somewhat unorthodox. “I don’t do nineto-five, I deal with weekend shoots and long
days on my feet. It’s not odd for me to hit the
road at 8:30 some evenings, and sometimes I
get home after midnight,” he says. As a result,
Enver has to fit his running in around his filming
and travelling schedule, but he makes it work
somehow. “Running allows me the freedom to
forget. I listen to my footsteps and push myself,
no matter what.”

GETTING INTO IT

Enver is a relative latecomer to running. After
undergoing knee operations due to an anterior
cruciate ligament injury from playing football, he
started cycling a decade ago to strengthen his leg
and core muscles. It was only on Comrades day in
2011, however, that running and the Big C became
his next bucket list must-do. “I joined Roodepoort
Athletics Club in 2012 and they’re a great bunch.
It’s like you’re on the set of Cheers and everyone
knows your name there!” he says.
Enver showing
off his Bill
Rowan medal.

“It was difficult training, but I got to the
Comrades start last year. I had little mileage,
but I was mentally strong – I believe the mind
is a muscle, and I was fully prepared,” he says.
“I get by with my hours. I know how my body
works and I don’t think anyone should be
intimidated by the amount of mileage or hours
people say you should do. Everyone is different
and there is always time to train. If I can’t run,
I’ll do my 100 squats and sit-ups a day, or use
my band for resistance training to work on
balance. It’s all about managing your time.”
Enver still hits the trails on his bike.

That said, he averaged just 55km a week in
preparation for his debut Comrades last year,
but still clocked an incredible 9:52, in spite of
the scorching temperatures, or the fact that the
recommended weekly mileage is twice as much!
This year, he averaged just 47km of training per
week, which he had to fit in between long shoots
in Paarl for Masterchef as well as a six-week
stint on the Survivor SA set in the South China
Sea. “That island must have been only three
kays around, and at times you couldn’t even
train because the humidity was so high. There
were several tropical storms, so I probably only
got in about five runs in those six weeks!”
Again, though, the lack of mileage did not hold
Enver back, and after running conservatively
throughout the race, he reached the 10km to
go mark and saw that a sub-nine finish was
possible. “I thought I’d kill myself trying then
end up just missing it, but when I entered that
stadium and heard the crowd roar, it gave me
an impetus to go a little faster,” and with one
second to spare, he made it across the line to
grab the last Bill Rowan medal.

22

ISSUE 61 AUGUST 2014 / www.modernathlete.co.za

NEXT ON THE AGENDA

With Comrades 2014 ticked off, as well as his
eighth Momentum Pick n Pay Cape Argus Cycle
Tour and Sani2C mountain bike race earlier
this year, Enver’s next goal is his 11th 94.7
Cycle Challenge in November. “From there it’s
New York, the Vic Falls Marathon, Boston and
Kilimanjaro. Luckily my wife Karen and daughter
Kiara-Jade support me with work and my races!
With my cycling background, too, running was
an easier transition, and I think it’s helped me
manage the kays I get out of my week.”