Portland's Naked Bike Ride Raises Awareness of Clean Transportation

My friend Brad just moved to Portland a few weeks ago, and although he has seen and done many things in his new place, nothing had prepared him for last night. On Saturday night he joined thousands of bikers in biking naked together to celebrate their World Naked Bike Ride.

According to The Portlander, the night was to be focused on raising awareness of “society’s gas guzzling ways.” 2010 saw an estimated 13,000 riders, which according to The Portlander, made it the largest Naked Bike Ride in the world to date.

FOX12 reports that nudity is legal in Oregon as long as a sexual act or attempted arousal is not involved. Additional police planned to station themselves along the route. Although nudity is legal, the police did ask that riders wear a helmet and shoes for safety.

Other biking events are taking place in Portland, Oregon for over two weeks during Pedalpalooza.

A Naked Bike Ride near Echo Park Lake in Los Angeles recently broke out in fighting between bike riders and the occupants of a car. Naked Bike Rides took place in New York and Chicago earlier this month.

Reports show that if the average American substituted one day’s worth of driving with riding per week, he’d cut auto emissions by 1,248 pounds of CO2, save over $800 on gas and maintenance, and burn enough calories to lose 19 pounds in one year. Nudity not required.