image by Robert Ashworth via flickr.com
Friday, June 3, is time for the annual Bellingham Naked World Bike Ride. Lots of cyclists are expected to ride through downtown area naked or not.
The event will start at 3 p.m. at the Hub Community Bike Shop, 903 1/2 N. State St., body painting before the ride will take place, the actual ride starts at 6pm.
The ride will go throughout downtown, riding streets like State, Holly, Forest, Prospect and Flora, as well as Railroad and Cornwall avenues. The 3.5-mile ride usually takes about an hour.
The Naked Bike Ride began in 2008 and is organized in many cities around the world. The local event is meant to bring awareness to issues such as cyclist safety, the environment, body image, and the country’s reliance on fossil fuels.
The ride does come with some legal risks. The Bellingham Police Department will not be cite naked riders unless someone files a report against a rider,
There was a complaint last year, but the charges were eventually dropped.
The first Bellingham ride had about 30 riders in 2008, 2015’s had nearly 300 riders.
So if you want to ride naked or wearing clothes get on down.
image by Robert Ashworth via flickr.com