Finally! After being postponed last month because of a little rain, the third annual World Naked Bike Ride did indeed take place yesterday, with crowds of bodypaint-and-brassiere clad cyclists taking to the streets of lower Manhattan and Williamsburg. In addition to being a legitimate excuse to strip down during the heat wave (and practice your breast-painting skills), the ride was also a protest to raise awareness about the dangers posed by "nuclear energy, automobile and oil dependence." Though not everyone went entirely au natural for the cause, even if it is a-ok to be topless in public.
UPDATE: Of course, it wouldn't be a Naked Bike Ride without some cop drama, and cop drama there was: Benjamin Shephard recounts some altercations throughout the heavily policed ride: "When a younger rider, tried to zoom outside the police line, one of the cops pushed his scooter into the way; his bike crashed, and rider hurled onto the street. This younger activist had had a verbal altercation going on with the police for several blocks." He also reports that a woman was ticketed for not riding in a bike lane, because that's always an easy line to follow in a parade full of other cyclists.
BikingNYC has some video of the mostly genial ride—watch it all the way through for a tally of the number of cops tailgating the cyclists:
