Cyclists bare it all during Philly’s Naked Bike Ride
They went along for the ride. Their clothes did not.
Hundreds of cyclists dressed down for a breezy ride through some of Philadelphia’s main streets Saturday during the 14th Philly Naked Bike Ride.
The eye-catching annual affair began in 2009 and revealed itself as an event to promote body positivity, cycling and fossil fuel reduction.
The event seems to encourage riders to go au natural — and organizers stress there’s no constraints — with participants able to go as “bare as they dare” for the roughly 13-mile journey.
The oftentimes pant-less pilgrimage changes from year to year, but typically takes bikers baring it all on a brisk ride past iconic city landmarks.
This year’s route passed the Philadelphia Museum of Art, where its steps were featured in the “Rocky” movies, City Hall; Rittenhouse Square, and the South Street entertainment area before finishing at Independence Hall.
“One of the goals of the Philly Naked Bike Ride is to desexualize nudity and to encourage everyone to embrace nudity as a normal, enjoyable way of life,” the event’s code of conduct reads.
“Following this policy will help further this goal and teach all of us how to be better people in general.”
Many of the participants agreed, including Garry J. Gadikian, who like hundreds of other bikers, chose to adorn his bare flesh with body paint and glitter.
“It’s a very freeing experience, and definitely something that you should do once in your life for that freedom,” Gadikian, who is from Atlantic City, NJ, said during a pre-race get-together in Fairmount Park.
Other participants found the naked truth behind the event: Acceptance of their own bodies.
“It’s just feeling comfortable with your own body and it’s OK to look at other people too, compare or not compare or just see how other people feel comfortable in their own bodies,” said first-time rider Christopher Jordan of New York City.
Participants were not limited to bicycles.
Scooters, e-bikes, rollerblades, skates, skateboards and joggers were welcomed to bare it all in the City of Brotherly Love. The only thing not allowed, organizers said, was any physical or sexual harassment.
Before the dash kicked off at 5 p.m. Saturday, riders gathered to paint their bodies — oftentimes writing out body-positive sayings and coating themselves in glitter.
Unlike last year, event organizers didn’t hold an afterparty because the ride’s “capacity and nudity makes it difficult,” organizers said on social media.
Instead, they recommended bikers gear up and dress up before going out to support local bars and restaurants.
Although nakedness is encouraged, sneakers are suggested for safety reasons.
With Post wires
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