NZ experience charms Alindogan

QUEENSTOWN, New Zealand — For his age, he should be over the hill, but 49-year-old Alvin Alindogan is not stopping.

He has swum, biked and run longer distances and more years than any other triathlete of his generation and has, in fact, during the last seven or eight years dominated this endurance sport, beating established triathletes 10 years younger or more.

Four years ago, at the age of 45, he won the inaugural Philippine Iron Man, the ultimate in triathlon covering a 3.8 km. swim, 180 km bike and 42 k run in Matabungcay, Batangas. His winning time of 10 hours, 50 minutes remains a record.

Two years later, in 2004, he ruled the half-iron man triathlon in a record time of 4:43, also unbeaten to-date.

No wonder, he treats the National Balance Queenstown International Marathon slated Sunday in Queenstown, New Zealand, as ordinary "routine."

"I haven’t really prepared for this run but I hope I can put in a faster pace than in the triathlon so I’ll have a chance for top prizes in my category (40-49 age group)," said Alindogan, whose best time in the 21K, where he is competing, is 1:22.

Alindogan and fellow triathlete Roy Adeva are joining several other New Balance representatives from New Balance operating countries in Asia and the Pacific after topping the qualifying race in the White Rock half-triathlon in Subic last October.

"We are happy to have two good triathletes to represent the Philippines in the New Zealand race. The New Balance Queenstown international marathon should give them an entirely different experience, and I’m sure they’ll enjoy their stay in this beautiful country," said Anton Gonzalez, president of Planet Sports, Inc., exclusive distributor of New Balance in the Philippines.

Gonzalez said New Balance had decided to pick the Philippine New Balance representative from the sport of triathlon in line with the brand’s commitment to promote sports consciousness on the grassroots level.

"This is in line with New Balance’s thrust of providing shoes not just for the elite but for everybody. That’s why New Balance does not use endorsers to sell itself. You don’t have to be a celebrity, you don’t have be somebody else. New Balance is simply for you, for everybody," said Bing Buenaventura, New Balance brand manager.

Ronnie Colmenar said New Balance has a great appeal to many runners because of the unique sizing system where a particular shoe comes in various widths to allow for more room on the side.

This, together with its lightweight features, is particularly important for triathletes who have to run long distances for hours on end.

"We also have a device to determine what kind of shoe a runner should use. We record the way he runs on a computer, and the computerized analysis will show whether the force of his feet is on his heel, at the middle or front," said Colmenar. "That determines the kind of shoe he should use."

New Balance entered the Philippine market five years ago, and has since been a major brand in sports shoes and apparel. New Balance is available at the New Balance Festival Supermall and all Planet Sports and The Athletes Foot stores nationwide.

Shoe testing is available at the Planet Sports at Rockwell Power Plant in Makati.

In celebration of its 50th year, New Balance is conducting sports-oriented projects, most notable of them the summer running clinics where it introduces the New Balance concept and products for running.