BikeBiz Bicycle and cycling retail news

Hold on, don't unsheathe the vitriol-dipped pens just yet, it's a spoof Budget prediction from that well-known mirth-making magazine, Payroll World. The 'cycle to work' tax is the stick. A free banana is the, er, carrot. Who says accountants don't have a sense of humour?

When Lance Armstrong was asked recently whether he had met anyone who can endure as much pain as himself, he said: “I don’t know about those crazy adventure sports but in mainstream sport, probably not." The Race Across America is definitely not a mainstream sport. So, is it crazy? Yes. For a start, it's 40 percent longer than the Tour de France but it takes two weeks less to complete. Solo competitors ride up to 22 hours and 350 miles per day. The event organiser says the 2004 RAAM could be "the subject of a major network television series."

Billed as "probably the biggest bike shop you'll ever visit", Graham Read's Cycle Warehouse has been trading from the same premises in Netherfield, Nottingham, for 47 years. Last week Graham Read, and son-in-law Richard Crawford, sold the business to Nick Thake, owner of bicycle import company Professional Cycle Marketing of Essex. Thake also operates nine Hawk Factory Cycles Stores and 18 Cycle King stores. He said he is always on the look-out for more stores to acquire.

The February stats for searches on BikeBiz.com reveal that site visitors are more interested in celeb name-drops than industry takeovers. The Dorel purchase of Pacific Cycle languishes at 19th most searched for word, whereas Michael Jackson is on top of the pile with 5.98 percent of all searches, beating Lance Armstrong's 2.45 percent. Even Lance Armstrong's current squeeze beats an industry story, with Sheryl Crow at 12th spot and, unlucky for some, True Temper at 13th.

In 45 days of racing, Lance Armstrong has been dope-tested 22 times. "Pretty tough to get away with anything that way or find anyone who is tested as much," said Armstrong. But still the critics snipe. Armstrong's open letter to Dick Pound, president of WADA, led to a 'what, me?' response from Pound, and then Armstrong countered again, saying his open letter was not just personal but a "defence of our sport."