Fund of £50,000 for biking group

An organisation which supports firms in the mountain biking industry has received £50,000 of funding from the Scottish Government.

Developing Mountain Biking in Scotland was awarded the cash for the coming year to help it deliver a mountain-biking strategy.

The sector is predominantly small, private businesses and the funding will ensure they have leadership at a national level to help them thrive.

Mountain-bike tourism has seen rapid growth and generates more than £100 million annually for the Scottish economy.

Fiona Hyslop announced the funding package at the forest tourism summit held at Glentress forest near Peebles in the Borders.

She said: “Mountain biking is an excellent example of a rapidly-growing sector which presents real opportunities for Scotland.”