Big Bear Bikes, which has been based in Pickering for 18 years, has been named a finalist in the Local Bike Shop Week Awards, which champion the in-store, in-person experience over online cycle shopping

The independent retailer, which also runs Dalby Forest Cycle Hub, has grown from a small local store into a 5,000 sq ft showroom employing 25 local staff and attracting cyclists from across North Yorkshire and beyond.

Managing Director David Beeley said the nomination reflects the shop’s focus on getting the right bike for every customer, rather than simply making a sale.

He said: “We strongly believe in the power of cycling to be good for people’s physical and mental health, and that underpins everything we do,” he said.

“We want to make sure people find the right bike for their size and shape, and the kind of cycling they want to do.”

David added: “We find that more than 50% of online customers choose a different size or model after talking to our friendly, expert team in person.

“You don’t get that kind of support when you shop online so we believe very strongly that visiting a local bike shop offers the very best customer experience.”

The Big Bear Bikes team is made up of keen cyclists with expertise across different disciplines, from road cycling to mountain biking.

The business places strong emphasis on after-sales support, helping customers who may have purchased bikes online or elsewhere but need adjustments, servicing or advice.

The showroom features around 150 bikes on display, allowing customers to compare models in person and test ride before buying, with a workshop, bike fit studio and parts department all under the same roof.

Big Bear Bikes works with a range of leading brands including Trek, Santa Cruz, Orbea, Raleigh, Marin, Haibike and Frog, and offers a price match guarantee to ensure customers receive best value.

Community involvement is also central to the business. Through its sister organisation, Dalby Forest Cycle Hub CIC, the team runs cycling courses for all abilities, from beginners learning to ride through to advanced off-road skills.

The company also supports local schools and families through discounted children’s bikes and helmet offers, alongside a programme of sponsorship for local athletes competing at national and international level.

Beyond cycling, Big Bear Bikes supports a range of local causes including Ryedale Special Families, Scarborough and Ryedale Mountain Rescue, and Help for Heroes, and works with the North York Moors National Park to provide free e-bike charging facilities.

David said: “Pickering is one of those rare towns where independent shops can still flourish, and the Local Bike Shop Week awards nomination is a testament to that kind of success.

“The team at Big Bear Bikes would be grateful if the people and business of Pickering could get behind us and vote for us in these awards.”

Please cast your vote for Big Bear Bikes here:

Local Bike Shop Awards Finalists

Voting closes at 11.45pm on Thursday.

The Wednesday letters page is worried what Sony’s PS5 DRM controversy is all about, as a reader wishes that XCOM 3 got announced this week.

Games Inbox is a collection of our readers’ letters, comments, and opinions. To join in with the discussions yourself email gamecentral@metro.co.uk

Instant access
With Saros out this week, I’m very tempted to buy it straight away. I have two main reasons for this: I really want to play it and Sony games rarely go down in price for physical. I’m fairly certain I’ll do it but I feel a bit of a chump for buying something at full price on day one.

Some people seem to swear by it but while I do it often enough I usually feel like I’ve fallen into a trap. Am I just being gullible and should I just wait a few months until it’s cheaper?

And yet there are real benefits. If it’s multiplayer it means you don’t get left behind by coming into it late but even for single-player it means you avoid any spoilers (probably) and get to be in on the conversation around it, which you won’t necessarily have if you pick it up six months later.

So I’m a bit torn. My head says I should wait and save money but heart says I want to get the game now and be an early adopter like the cool kids.
Goldie

Inevitable U-turn
This PS5 30 day DRM thing is very strange. Sony hasn’t said anything about. A lot of people think it’s a bug, and it’s just come out of nowhere for no reason. I’m going to guess that it was all intentional and they somehow thought people were just going to roll over and accept it, because that’s how all these companies act… until there’s an instant uproar and they have to do another U-turn.

Why can’t Sony just be normal? They’ve already got a virtual monopoly, so just sit there and rake in the money. Why do you then need to start making it clear we don’t own anything we buy and that publishers can take it away from us whenever they want. Funnily enough, that makes me less likely to buy something, which you would’ve thought is not what they’re trying to encourage.
Cribbens

Splash damage
Had no idea it was Firaxis’ 30th anniversary this year, but if I had known I would’ve bet on not hearing a word about XCOM. We didn’t get a new video game annoucement, but we did at least get something, so I guess that’s better than expected?

It’s still tragic to me what happened with Marvel’s Midnight Suns. People don’t buy one game and an entire studio is ruined forever, a promising franchise is killed instantly, and another (XCOM) will probably never get a chance again. The worst thing is Midnight Suns is a really good game! It’s a crying shame what happened.
Wotan

Email your comments to: gamecentral@metro.co.uk

Capcom minus Marvel
I’m not sure how I feel about a Capcom game universe. It sounds fun to have Dino Crisis and Resident Evil and Pragmata being in the same world, but I imagine it’d all get old real quick once you start all the exposition to explain it. But then again, the thought of a zombie dinosaur and a robot dinosaur sound very appealing to me.

You could even say Onimusha was from back in time and Devil May Cry was maybe the same universe too. But yeah… it’s probably not worth it.

What I would love to see though is a new Vs. fighter. We’re not getting Marvel anytime soon, and Warner Bros. owns DC Comics, so let’s just skip the middleman and make it Capcom vs. Capcom. I would buy the hell out of that, deluxe versions included.

I’m not really sure why it’s never happened before because I don’t think it’d be an especially expensive game to make, especially if they based it on the Street Fighter 6 engine. Maybe they can use their Resident Evil Requiem money to give us that Leon vs. Phoenix Wright showdown we’ve all been craving.
Klaus

Rise of the Machine
I have a lot of trouble imagining the Steam Machine is going to be a big success or change anything about gaming. Number one is that Valve never make enough of their hardware. The Steam Deck would be a lot bigger if they just produced more and made them easier to get but they don’t seem to care.

And now it sounds like they’re going to shadow drop the hardware out of nowhere in the middle of June or something. I know that worked for Nintendo but Valve don’t exactly have the same amount of experience. Half-Life 3 could make a difference, but when you can play it on any other PC does that really count as an exclusive?
Rarebit

Change of plan
Correct me if I’m wrong, but I believe this whole Xbox releasing on other platforms was a plan that hugely backfired on Phil Spencer. If I’m right in saying that with Xbox Game Pass Microsoft forced Sony to up their game with PS Plus in order to offer realistic competition. So when Microsoft started buying everything up they had the dream of negating console exclusives (mainly because theirs weren’t selling) and thought that by releasing games multiplatform they would again force Sony’s hand, due to consumer expectations and pressure to follow suit.

This obviously hasn’t worked, except for a few games on PC which Sony have now apparently abandoned and now Sony fans are getting the best of both worlds and Xbox is failing hard. Now I’ve always had Xboxes, including the Xbox Series X, so I was actually a fan but I’ve now migrated back to Sony for the first time since PlayStation 2 and it would take a lot to coax me back.

In my opinion, I think Xbox need to go back to exclusives for the next gen (and actually make some decent ones) and probably drop the Xbox moniker, as I think most of the damage is irreversible to the brand. I do hope they do something good with Project Helix, as competition is healthy in any business and we have all seen how Sony has been acting now they are effectively the only choice for high-end gaming on consoles.
P B

GC: It’s not clear who’s idea going multiformat was, but it seemed to be something that was forced upon Spencer, after so much money was spent buying Activision Blizzard. It was certainly Spencer’s original plan to make all Bethesda games exclusive.

Chance annoucement
Every now and again I remember that Atlus still hasn’t announced Persona 6 or given any hint of when it’s out, which is so rude of them.

I’m hoping that it might turn up at the Summer Game Fest because I really don’t want to have to wait until December and The Game Awards. GC, do you think there’s a chance we’ll see it in the next couple of months?
Colin

GC: There’s certainly a chance but there’s no hint or rumour to suggest it one way or another.

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Busy month
Wow! I just read your article about all the games coming out in May. Is everyone trying to escape a GTA 6 launch or what?

It’s a nice list though. I’ll see how some of them review here before I have another look at buying any.

I had been peeking on the Bond game which everyone always hopes will trump GoldenEye 007, because, let’s face it, no Bond game has ever since. Forza Horizon 6 and the Lego Batman game I had been checking out too. They’re more a series of games I’ve played than anything I’m really excited about, especially as the Lego formula and Horizon voiceovers have got stale over a series of time.

I haven’t had anything on my must-buy radar for ages, and it’s kind of disappointing for me being a long time gamer and having an Xbox Series X and a Switch 2 and feeling like I’ve nothing left to play that I’m really into. I have done a lot of Fallout 4 recently as well and its leagues ahead of Starfield.

The last game I kept coming back to, minus Fallout 4, was the Super Bomberman Collection and that release has me scratching my head why they haven’t added all those different retro arenas into just one edition, so there’d be a ton of them and made a golden edition of the game. I don’t think they ever needed to start giving characters special moves, it was better before it on random pick-ups from bomb blasts. Your review on the collection was great and it made me buy it, by the way.

I thought Dirtystopout’s Reader’s Feature was top drawer at the weekend, I was actually disappointed when it ended. I love hearing about how people got hooked up on video games and what sucked them in over the years.

Keep up the good work.
Nick The Greek

GC: Thanks.

Inbox also-rans
Is Directive 8020 one of those interactive movie type games like Until Dawn?
Tom Twice

GC: It is. In fact, it’s by the same developer as Until Dawn, as are all The Dark Pictures Anthology games and The Quarry.

To whom it may concern: I do not want to be buried in a Mario-shaped coffin. If you do that to me I will haunt you.
Kimpo

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The small print
New Inbox updates appear every weekday morning, with special Hot Topic Inboxes at the weekend. Readers’ letters are used on merit and may be edited for length and content.

You can also submit your own 500 to 600-word Reader’s Feature at any time via email or our Submit Stuff page, which if used will be shown in the next available weekend slot.

You can also leave your comments below and don’t forget to follow us on Twitter.

MORE: Games Inbox: What new characters will be in the next Smash Bros.?

MORE: Games Inbox: Which is better out of Pragmata and Saros?

MORE: Games Inbox: When is The Elders Scrolls 6 coming out?

A second man was also injured in the crash

Aman involved in a crash involving a quad bike is in a critical condition. Emergency services were called to a crash between a Yamaha quad bike and white BMW along Dogsthorpe Road in Peterborough just before 8pm on Monday (April 27).

The quad bike passenger, a 22-year-old man, suffered serious injuries. He remains in a critical condition at Addenbrooke’s Hospital in Cambridge.

The other rider, also a 22-year-old man, initially failed to stop at the scene. He was later treated at Peterborough City Hospital for his injuries.

The driver of the BMW was uninjured. Sergeant David McIlwhan, from Cambridgeshire Police’s road policing unit said: “We are keen to hear from anyone who was in the area around the time of the collision.

“If you believe you may have dashcam footage of either vehicle in the lead up to the collision, please also get in touch with us as this may help us paint a better picture of what happened.”

The East of England Ambulance Service also attended the scene. An ambulance spokesperson said: “One ambulance, a rapid response vehicle, a paramedic car and the MAGPAS Air Ambulance were sent to Dogsthorpe Road Peterborough yesterday evening following reports of quad-bike rider injured in road traffic collision.

“One patient with serious injuries was transported by road ambulance to Addenbrooke’s Hospital.”

Anyone with information should report it online or call police on 101 and quote Op Penhale or incident 505 of April 27.

Do you want more of the latest Cambridgeshire news as it comes in from across the county? Sign up to our dedicated newsletter to make sure you never miss a big story from Cambridge or anywhere else in the county. You can also sign up to our dedicated Traffic and Crime newsletters for the latest updates on the topics you are most interested in.

A number of defects were found with the roof

A train station pub’s roof needs repairs as a “matter of urgency”. Cambridge’s railway station building dates back to 1845, when it was first built by Eastern Countries Railway.

The former ticket office is a part of the original building and was converted into the pub, known as The Old Ticket Office, in 2018. Greater Anglia, which owns the station building, has proposed to carry out roof repairs at the pub.

This includes flashing replacement, slate replacement where required, drainage improvements, leak prevention, and remedial work to walls where required. Timber repairs to roof members could also take place, as well as installation of a man safe to the roof.

In its application, Greater Anglia said the repairs are a “matter of urgency” in order to “address any progressive damage such as timber decay and mould to the existing structure”. A Greater Anglia spokesperson added: ““We have submitted for Listed Building Consent to carry out essential repairs to the Old Ticket Office pub at Cambridge railway station.

“These works will address areas of deterioration and are being progressed as a priority to protect the building and support the tenant. Subject to Listed Building Consent, we expect work to begin later this year and take around three months to complete. The pub will remain open during this time and we do not expect any impact on customers using the station.”

A survey on the roof via drone footage revealed a number of issues. The slate hipped roofs had a “number of significant defects”, while gutters were found to be “narrower than expected”.

It was also clear from drone footage that the gutters had “usual defects”, including debris, material fatigue, and a “lack of regular maintenance were visible”. Other defects were recognised from the roof, including vegetation growth and structural issues.

The applicant proposes to carry out a number of different repairs. This includes installing new coping stones, brickwork repairs, options to repoint internal brickwork joints, and other repairs.

In order to complete the work, a temporary scaffold would be set up outside the pub. The pub is still expected to open if the works are approved.

The applicant added: “The scaffold design process included how the scaffold would impact on the day-to-day operations of the station frontage and the Old Ticket Office public house, maintaining safe access and egress for customers, maintaining accessible access for persons with disabilities and emergency service access for the duration of these works.”

The Department for Work and Pensions has introduced new regulations extending PIP assessment review periods, benefiting nearly four million claimants and delivering savings of around £300 million

Nearly four million people receiving Personal Independence Payments will see the frequency of their health assessments reduced under new changes. The Department for Work and Pensions has introduced regulations enabling it to extend all existing PIP award reviews to a minimum of three years for new claims, increasing to five years at the subsequent review if entitlement continues.

This extended timeframe has already begun to apply to numerous fresh PIP claims. The government says the modifications to new and existing PIP claims will generate savings of approximately £300million in total, with alterations to existing claimants accounting for roughly £230million of this figure. The DWP stated the measure seeks to release health professionals to conduct more face-to-face assessments and complete additional reassessments.

PIP is the primary disability benefit for working-age individuals in the UK. People may qualify for PIP if they require additional support with daily activities owing to an illness, disability or mental health condition. PIP eligibility isn’t determined by people’s conditions, but instead by how it impacts their daily life.

Following changes implemented from April 6, health reviews have been prolonged to a minimum of three years for most new PIP claimants aged 25 and above, extending to five years at their subsequent review if entitlement persists, reports the Mirror. Since 2016 in England and Wales, almost 60% of award reviews have resulted in no alteration.

The modifications are distinct from a review being undertaken by disability minister Sir Stephen Timms, which will examine the function of PIP, eligibility criteria for the daily living and mobility components, and the assessment procedure.

Commenting on the new changes, Sir Stephen said: “Reforming the welfare system so that it better meets the needs of disabled people is a priority for the government. A major part of this is ensuring that Pip is fit and fair for the future – and we are taking an important step to improve the system through new legislation, which will reduce the frequency of reviews for many existing Pip customers.

“This will make the system more efficient by freeing up the capacity of health professionals to tackle our inherited assessment backlog, while removing unnecessary pressure from disabled claimants whose conditions rarely change at each review.”

He added: “We are also increasing face-to-face assessments for Pip from 6% in 2024 to 30% of all assessments. Additionally, my review is looking into how we can bolster Pip for the future, and we have opened a call for evidence for people to share their views on how Pip should be reformed.”

Harriet Edwards, director of influencing at the national disability charity Sense, said: “The process of applying for disability benefits is long, complicated, and emotionally distressing, and so we welcome these plans to help disabled people go through fewer assessments in the future.

“Sense research found over half of disabled PIP claimants with complex needs felt humiliated during their assessment; clearly this process needs to urgently change.

“It’s vital that the Timms Review continues to work with disabled people to make the application process for PIP fairer and less distressing. But most importantly, what disabled people with complex needs require is reassurance that the government won’t make further cuts to benefits that provide a lifeline for them.”

Fazilet Hadi, Disability Rights UK’s head of policy, said: “Reducing the frequency of PIP reviews makes sense, both for disabled people and DWP. So often our needs remain the same, and reviews just cause anxiety. It is of concern that face-to-face reviews will increase, as these can be physically and emotionally challenging.”

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Taking place on Thursday, May 14, at Ramside Hall Hotel, the event will explore the theme Maximise Your Business Value and is part of a popular series hosted by Sunderland-based wealth management firm Northern Spire.

David Cook, founder and managing partner of Northern Spire, said: “This is the latest in our series of briefings and tickets are being snapped up quickly.

“As usual, we have some top panellists to discuss our topic, looking at growing your business and then exiting it when the time is right.”

The session will be jointly hosted by Mr Cook and financial adviser Suzanne Watson and will begin at 8.30am.

Panellists include Kate Cooper Fay, group CEO at Cooper Fay Harris; Jon Malton, founder of the Lighthouse Business Club and former managing director at Ringtons Ltd; Luke Philpott, corporate partner at BHP Law; and Carl Swansbury, partner and head of corporate finance at Ryecroft Glenton.

Mr Malton said: “I was delighted to be invited to join the panel.

“I see too many business owners working really hard without reaping the rewards for their efforts, the risks they have taken, and the responsibilities they carry – not just for the business, but also for their employees and their families.

“It can be a heavy burden and a lonely place.

“For proud business owners, it can be hard asking for help, so by being a panel member I hope in some small way, I can share my knowledge and experience which may prove useful.”

He brings a wealth of experience to the table.

Mr Malton said: “I’ve been lucky in my career – I trained in the corporate world, worked in family businesses, and owned and operated my own businesses.

“I think it’s fair to say that maximising a business’s value is harder now than ever before.

“Whether an owner is looking to sell or stay, I’d suggest they focus on making themselves dispensable by developing their leadership team, improving systems and processes, and building strong financials.

“If they sell, their business will be highly saleable; if they stay, they’ll enjoy their business rather than being a slave to it.”

The event will include a Q&A session, giving attendees the opportunity to engage directly with the panel.