A COMMUNITY raised £2,187 for the Yorkshire Air Ambulance from the sale of special bikes created for the Tour de Yorkshire.

After successfully producing plywood bikes for the Tour de France's Grand Depart in Yorkshire in 2014, Bedale-based Dave Allison decided to produce new bikes with a different shape and multi-coloured to raise more money for the Yorkshire Air Ambulance.

Local businesses rallied round to help, Aspectcpm provided a space for Dave and fellow bike creator Brian Booker to work, Fall Timber supplied plywood at cost and House and Home organised free paint from PPG Paints.

Production got in to full swing in the spring with the bikes on sale from March 27 - and long before the tour even arrived in the area 200 were sold at a frantic pace through the town's Food Weighouse shop.