Guest Post by Tyson Hallock. Possibly NSFW.
…4…3…2…1…ride naked! I had just ridden my bike down to the Portland 2010 World Naked Bike ride meeting area, a fenced in lot near Hawthorne bridge. Fully clothed I instantly felt out of place and looked for an open area to park my bike where I could tear my clothes off. Seconds later I was fully naked and I blended in with the masses pushing numbers upwards of 13,000. Even though the countdown had ended it took a good 30 to 40 minutes to exit through the gate bottle necking thousands of boobs and balls before parading down the streets of Portland.
What the..? Those people aren't wearing pants. Photo: Jason Van Horn
Surrounded by a sea of nude and partially clothed bodies I felt far less awkward than expected. All body types, shapes, and sizes were represented, and all had an incredibly positive energy. It was truly a freeing and exhilarating experience incomparable to any other bike ride I have ever been on. Our route took us across the Burnside bridge into down town, back across the Broadway bridge into north east and all the way out to 39th and Hawthorne, and finally ending where we started near the Hawthorne bridge.
Dancers and a capoeira group get the party started as participants start their pre-funk party before riding around without clothes.
I don’t remember our exact route, I was to busy maneuvering through walls of naked bodies on bikes and cheering on bystanders who were stripping their clothes off to join us. Hopefully the purpose of the ride, protesting oil dependence, does not go unrecognized. There is a reason the Portland World Naked Bike ride boasts such a large turn out, because we care about the environment and strive to make it a better place.
All of a sudden, there are people all over missing their clothing.
What's going on here? People are taking their clothes off all over! Johnny, you are going home, right now!
Photos by Jason Van Horn, who was out riding around with Inga, and checked out a big street party only to find themselves surrounded by thousands of people taking off their clothes to protest.. something. I kept looking for Frank the tank, but I did not see him, although he had about 10,000 plus friends riding bikes, past the dorms, over by the bridge…
