People will be riding around naked on bikes in Toronto next week
Toronto will be overrun with buck-naked bike riders next week as the annual World Naked Bike Ride (WNBR) returns.
If hundreds of bikers clad in their finery driving through the city last month wasn't au natural enough for you, yet another group of bikers (on bicycles this time) is taking to the streets in nothing but their birthday suits — and you can join them.
The World Naked Bike Ride has become a traffic-stopping annual tradition in the 20 years since it began, with riders stripping down to their socks (though many sport colourful body paint) and cycling around their city.
According to the WNBR's website, the purpose of the annual ride is to "celebrate cycling and the human body," while demonstrating the "vulnerability of cyclists on the road," and protesting the overuse of fossil fuels and crude oils.
In the past, riders have also used the ride, fittingly, as an opportunity to protest cencorship and nudity laws.
This year, Toronto's Naked Bike Ride will be taking place on Saturday, June 8, with participants set to gather at Coronation Park at 10 a.m. Body paint and bike decorating will be done there before the bikers hit the streets at 1 p.m.
If you're a little too shy to participate (or don't relish in the idea of sitting on a bike seat pants-free,) but still want to cheer on the brave participants, they'll certainly be hard to miss.
You can expect to catch the Naked Bike Ride passing through hotspots in the city like Trinity Bellwoods Park, Kensington Market, Yorkville, Yonge-Dundas (soon to be Sankofa) Square and the CN Tower on their route.
You can view a complete route map of this year's Toronto Naked Bike Ride and learn more about the ride by visiting the event's website, and if you do choose to participate, be sure to bring extra sunscreen.
Hector Vasquez
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