International World Naked Bike Ride a great success

The North Island's first Naked Bike Ride breezed through Waihi Beach at the weekend. Photo / Blair Hinton

Nothing to see here.

Just cyclists making their way from Bowentown to Waihi Beach in various states of undress.

While it’s a bit of a giggle for bystanders, the intention of Saturday’s ride was to drive home messages of body positivity, environmental awareness and to especially highlight the vulnerability of cyclists on roads.

It was the Waihi Beach event of the International World Naked Bike Ride — the first event of its kind in the North Island.

Hauraki Naturally founder Andrew Cook had tried to organise the event in March but it was postponed due to Government Covid-19 restrictions.

Saturday’s ride was well received by the public, he says, ‘’who clapped and cheered as the riders made their way through the shopping precinct along Wilson Rd, while others waved from their balconies’'.

International World Naked Bike Ride began as a light-hearted protest with an environmental undertow of promoting cycling as well as positive body image, the health aspect and cycle safety.

‘’With another four cycling deaths in the last couple of months and the ever growing concern over climate change, we believe the aims and message of the WNBR are critical in these times.’’

Andrew says the ride was completed in warm and dry conditions, despite a foreboding forecast of thunderstorms.