World Naked Bike Ride (London) (38)

An all I'll say is, "Please don't tell me what I do or do not think."

Perhaps you might like to actually attend an event like this before you may such frankley ridculous sweeping statements. Events like this may have some impact on local road safety ( are you opposed to this ?) I'm doubtful if its goin to affect the global auto industry at all.

And to the best of my knowledge all the peps who parcipitated on a bike, rode home on a bike. Clearly you know absolutly nothin 'bout London Bike culture.

"Yeah I like Kinky stuff,dirty dark pervy stuff,weird sex.... An' Yerself ?"
Award Winning Switch.

tut tut .....

And so it comes down to this. Get busy living or get busy dying.

A comprehensive solution doesn't dismiss any options. Hydrogen powered vehicles will fill some niches and fossil fuel hybrids will fill others. Short range could easily go fully electric, and local travel could well be pedal-powered. It's all about making the best use of the resources that we have, and while I believe it is ultimately possible to meet the country's energy needs (including land transport) from renewables, I'd say that 'peak oil' is what we really need to concentrate on. Maybe electric vehicles don't solve any real problems right now, but the Mayor of London likes them because they pollute somewhere in Yorkshire instead.

As I said before, each to their own. If you support the WNBR organisers' political goals, then by all means give them your support, but forgive those of us with alternative opinions for seeing them as a bunch of cyclists with huge chips on their shoulders. I don't support their argument, therefore I won't add to the numbers on what effectively amounts to a protest. All I ask is that people make themselves aware of the facts and don't endorse a political point of view that they don't agree with. If you do agree with it, then by all means show your support.

* Edit (just to clarify) I have covered over half a million motoring miles (closer to a million) and have never been involved in an accident involving a pedestrian or a cyclist... Just in case anyone decides to believe that I was regularly mowing down innocents just over half a million miles ago.

Edited 11 Jun 11, 10:58 PM by Juantastic

So are you saying that metal boxes powered by hydrogen will kill cyclists in a more environmentally friendly way and that makes it OK?

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"Journalism" is an anagram of "o, lunar jism".

http://maitressep.livejournal.com/654755.html

www.thedivinemissp.co.uk

I'm loving the negativity!

Do you also sit outside Tescos to see who buys a dougnut and then goes to Weightwatchers? You must be a million laffs, really.

There's nowhere to park in central London, especially when Trooping the Colour is on, as it was yesterday, the roads are closed and bays suspended. So I'd go for zero SUVs. Lots of bikes, some rickshaws, roller blades and some people even ran it.

But thank you for your useful contribution as to why you won't be coming to something that was nowhere near you anyway. I'm sure we all found it very beneficial.

www.thedivinemissp.co.uk

Are you seriously suggesting that the (well over) 1000 individuals who took part in this event all have identical extremist political viewpoints & attitudes to transport issues?

I think you're projecting TBH...

OK, the front page of the main worldwide WNBR website does mention 'the vulnerability of cyclists' & 'the negative consequences of oil dependency', but then elsewhere on the site it mentions 'body image/self awareness', 'self-sufficiency' & 'Community-building'. Pretty far from what you're suggesting it's all about. (do you have any links to the 'demonising' at all?)

Regardless of what those who came up with the idea believe, every rider had their own reasons for taking part. I find it quite insulting that you just lump everyone together as 'them' & then presume to tell us what we all think.

The big thing you seem to be missing amongst the politics, is the fact that a large group of naked people cycling through the urban landscape is a spectacle to behold. It's hilarious & being part of it is a great experience. Some of the reactions are priceless & I guarantee people will be chuckilng away to themselves & having a laugh with their workmates about it for quite some time.

British attitudes to nudity are laughted at elsewhere in Europe & AFAIC those attitudes are about 50 years out of date. As a cyclist I do (of course) think it's important that drivers are aware/considerate, (to all road users, not just cyclists), but for me personally, breaking the nudity taboo (& having fun while doing so) is probably my biggest reason for doing it.

I don't know when you last went to London, but I can assure you there's hardly anywhere to park & certainly not anywhere near Hyde Park... There were riders from all over, so yes, some of them will have come by car. For the record: Yes, I did drive my car from the South Coast to London with my bike in the back, then parked up & rode the last 6 or 7 miles to Hyde Park. After the ride I went to FSC (which I was going to anyway) so it wasn't even an extra trip.

It is possible to be into cycling, interested in body issues & actually like cars as well you know. As well as being a cyclist I can also be a bit of a petrol-head sometimes. I really don't think there's a contradiction there...

Oh, & well done for driving all those miles without injuring any cyclists. Give yourself a gold star or something.

376, xxx.

"Life at its best is a creative synthesis of opposites in fruitful harmony" - Martin Luther King, Jr.

It was.

I did keep an eye out for you but the crowd was huge!

Maybe I'll see you there next time.

376, xxx.

"Life at its best is a creative synthesis of opposites in fruitful harmony" - Martin Luther King, Jr.

If the WNBR's approach were one of safety for all, then I'd be right behind them. Instead, it's an attack on mechanically powered personal transport from every angle they can pitch on - mainly oil dependency and the fact that cars kill cyclists.

So all you've achieved in your previous post is to ignore all of my points and throw a straw man at me. I really don't see any point in trying to discuss this rationally with you.

As for the WNBR itself: I suppose if even those who participate don't see the darker political message, it's fair to assume that those who observe the protest don't either. Perhaps it's harmless fun after all. Even so, I still choose not to lend my support.

I'll grant that maybe the London area ride is different, but this is a worldwide event (my nearest one being Manchester.) Of course I'm familiar with the way that the capital tends to operate on the basis that what's good for it is good for the rest of the country: look at the previous government's efforts to get congestion charging introduced into other cities. It's probably fair to say that there's considerably less justification for owning and running a car if you live and work in Central London than there is if you live in a remote village that only has one return bus service per day.

I'll wear my gold star with pride, and I'll continue to watch where I'm going when I'm driving and to stick to urban speed limits. That's more than a lot of drivers seem to do