BikeBiz Bicycle and cycling retail news

Friday's newspaper carried a double-page spread of a selection of UK cycle-related websites. Alongside big pix of leisure cycling were mentions of the 'pick of the cycle sites'. The Carol Vorderman-branded web section of the paper mentioned whycycle.co.uk first, and BikeBiz.co.uk second. Halfords.com came fourth and whilst there were mentions of wiggle.co.uk and the Evans Cycles website, Singletrack and Bikemagic didn't get mentions.

Dave Cockram, a chartered civil engineer and road-and-track cyclist, said "Cycle racing is facility based and has enjoyed free use of the biggest facility of all, the public highway. However, if we are to attract new blood into the sport we need safe, traffic-free facilities where all cycling disciplines can be enjoyed."

P&A from Ben Cooper's Glasgow IBD-cum-supplier business is now visible online. The products include SON hub dynamos, Heinzmann motors and Pantour hubs. And the micro-site also includes a dead useful Windows-specific gear calculation prog.

Alumotive is catchily billed as the International Exhibition of Aluminium and Light Alloys Components for the Transport Industry. It will be staged 6-8th November 2003 at the Palazzo dei Congressi in Bologna. As well as talks and booths relating to cars and aircraft, there will plenty of stuff for bike manufacturers too, promises the expo organising company.

Specifically, folding bikes. The latest poster ad campaign from Smirnoff Ice, the Guinness UDV-owned vodka brand is a spoof recycling campaign and uses an image of a folding bike to show what kind of products alumunium is wasted on, when it could be made into cans filled with a certain alcopop.