BikeBiz Bicycle and cycling retail news

The US East coast hardtail bikes by Dave Weagle - he of e13, and the DW Link - are now being distributed in the UK by Silverfish. Darren Mabbott said he is now building a "very select and specialist UK dealer base."

The launch of a £200 000 bike skills trail in Hamsterley Forest, near Bishop Auckland, County Durham, is an "important first step in its bid to become England's first Premier Mountain Biking Centre, bringing with it a substantial boost to Teesdale's tourism industry," said a statement from Forestry Commission England.

Graeme Fife, author of the recently updated and revised 'Tour de France: The History, the Legend, the Riders', has written a biography of Bob Chicken Snr. 'Bob Chicken - A Passion for the Bike' is interspersed with a history of the post-1945 British bicycle industry. Book extract within, including the history of the famous 'pub', The Penguin and Fishbowl.

Eddie Eccleston is to close Ideal Bicycle Ltd. of St Helen's and will become a consultant to Professional Cycle Manufacturing Ltd., the West Midlands bike plant of Nick Thake's PCM group.

The BikeBiz wallplanner - supported by Fisher Outdoor Leisure - will be shipped with the next issue of the mag. If you have any shows or events to add to our list, get in touch.