UPDATE 1-British retailer Halfords suffers cycling sales wobble

(Adds shares, quotes, details)

By Neil Maidment

LONDON, Sept 2 (Reuters) - British car parts to bikesretailer Halfords said a recent boom in bicycle saleshad fallen off sharply in its second quarter, though strongtrading across the rest of its retail business would keep it ontrack to meet profit forecasts.

Boosted by British cycling successes at events such as theOlympics and Tour de France, cycling has increased inpopularity, with Halfords expanding its accessories, bike rangesand improving online categories to tap demand.

However, the company said on Wednesday wet August weatherand increased discounting in the market had led to an 11 percentdecline in like-for-like cycling sales in the first eight weeksof its second quarter, well below its expectations.

Sales rose 2 percent in its first quarter and grew by 11.4percent in its previous fiscal year to March 27.

Despite Halfords' profit reassurance, shares in the firm,which trades from 470 stores in the UK and Ireland and another306 Autocentres, fell almost 10 percent on the news.

By 0724 GMT they were down 7.6 percent at 471.5 pence.

"Confidence in the long-term potential is likely to weaken abit today, but with the weak patch already behind us our view ofthe long term prospects don't alter," N+1 Singer analyst MatthewMcEachran said, maintaining a "buy" rating on the stock.

In recent years the firm has invested heavily in customerservice, store upgrades and new ranges, helping it to achieve its 1 billion pound ($1.53 billion) sales target a year early inJune.

Chief Executive Jill McDonald, who joined Halfords in Mayfrom fast food chain McDonald's, said she was confident thecycling business would grow, helped by a planned revamp ofchildren's bikes and accessories.

"This recent weakness in our cycling sales is disappointing,but it comes after two years of very strong growth in thecategory," McDonald said.

Halfords said retail trading elsewhere, particularly in carmaintenance, had been strong and that improved profitability andcost control meant full-year group pretax profit would bebroadly in line with market expectations.

Halfords is expected to post a pretax profit of 86.2 millionpounds, up from 84.1 million pounds a year earlier, according toReuters data. ($1 = 0.6532 pounds) (Editing by David Holmes and Louise Heavens)

Halfords