Brought to you by Going Going Bike
If we all had the chance, we’d like to cycle in as less clothing as possible. Well in the summer anyway. Ok I will rephrase that that to a summer in a country that has more than five days of sun. Which brings us to a survey by Irish transport solutions company GreenAer, which posed the question of what would be Dubliners favourite cycling attire if there were no practical, logistical or social barriers?
Less clothing
GreenAer interviewed 137 Dublin cyclists in the survey, of which 70% voted in favour of cycling with as little as clothes as possible. The research also showed 8 out of 10 Dublin cyclists “gear up” (e.g. sweater, jacket, high visibility vest) for their cycle trips, but would rather not do so due to “sweatiness”, “bulkiness” or “clothing style”. A minority of respondents (3 out of 10) indicated they would be interested in cycling (partly) naked. We’re not sure if that works out so well in the winter.
No bare faced cheek here
GreenAer wants to cater for these hardy souls who want to dress down and have created “The Bare Cycling Club“ as a place for these cyclists to hang out and cycle together while feeling the wind on their legs or somewhere else. The draft articles of association for the club sets out that members should “strive to wear as little as possible, without interfering with public safety or morality”. It will also cater for the needs of the minority preferring to cycle (almost) naked. So far 15 Dubliners have expressed an interest in joining the club.
Working within the law
As part of its mission statement, the Bare Cycling Club stresses it is not a nudist association and that its activities are within the legal framework. With this in mind and so to avoid confrontations it advises its partly naked members to cycle only between 10 pm and 6 am. Having said that the group organised an alternative ride on the day of Sky Ride Dublin on September 11 where they got down to the bare necessities during the day.
Join up
GreenAer is organising an evening for persons interested in joining the Bare Cycling Club today. The event will include a lecture on cycling and nudity. To attend, RSVP to info@greenaer.ie by 6pm tonight.
