One of the most original events took place yesterday in London. The World Naked Bike Ride is the biggest naked protest in the World. It's a celebration of the bicycle, the environment and the human body and a protest against the car, the oil dependency and the vulnerability of the cyclist.
Over half a million journeys by bike are made every day in London, according to The Economist. But the capital is not a safe place for cycling. Between 2006 and 2011, 439 cyclists were killed in traffic accidents in Greater London. The worst year was 1989, when 33 people died.
In 2003 Conrad Schmidt conceived The World Naked Bike Ride. The first WNBR event in 2004 was a collaboration between the WNBR group and Manifestación Ciclonudista in Spain. That year, 28 cities celebrated this kind of protest. In 2010 it took place in 74 cities, in 17 different countries.
The first race of this year, in the UK, was celebrated in Portsmouth, the 24th of May, and it will draw to an end in Clacton, on the 19th of July. The London race had six different assembly points. The north side set off from Marble Arch, Regent's Park and King's Cross and they were merged together in Piccadilly Circus/ Haymarket. The two south columns, Clapham Junction and West Norwood, met at Vauxhall Bridge. And all of them plus Tower Hill riders converged on Westminster Bridge to reach Wellington Arch, where the race finished.
And if you want to participate next year but you are shy, don't worry. The dress code is "bare as you dare" so you are not obliged to strip off completely.
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