diff --git a/Makefile b/Makefile
index e468a15..e82d0de 100644
--- a/Makefile
+++ b/Makefile
@@ -1,4 +1,5 @@
-VIRTUALENV = virtualenv
+SYSTEMPYTHON = `which python2 python | head -n 1`
+VIRTUALENV = virtualenv --python=$(SYSTEMPYTHON)
 PYTHON = local/bin/python
 NOSE = local/bin/nosetests -s
 FLAKE8 = local/bin/flake8