We went to the Naked Bike Ride. Here's what we uncovered

Streaking off to chants of “less gas, more ass,” 300 bikers exposed themselves to a beautiful Milwaukee summer day in the World Naked Bike Ride Saturday. 

Starting at Kochanski’s Concertina Beer Hall, the bikers wound their way through Milwaukee’s storied streets including Water, State and Brady streets. Making a loop through the lakefront and the Historic Third Ward, participants biked roughly 15 miles.

Organizer Jon Jankowski believes the ride helps people shed their inhibitions and celebrate “body positivity” while also demonstrating the importance of fighting climate change.

“It was truly rewarding," Jankowski told the Journal Sentinel after the race. "This is a place for us to celebrate our bodies. With many people from all types, all walks of life, all shapes, all sizes, all colors, we all came together for a common cause of body positivity. We shared many smiles and many laughs with many people. It was truly rewarding."

Saturday’s bike ride was the third annual event organized in Milwaukee under the flag of the World Naked Bike Ride. With 20 vendors and food trucks, participants began gathering at the beer hall around noon.

Officially conceived — according to the World Naked Bike Ride’s website — in 2003 by Conrad Schmidt to protest oil dependence and celebrate the human body, some of Saturday’s participants have been biking naked in protest for much longer.

“I’ve been doing this since the '80s in San Francisco to protest fossil fuel dependence,” Patrick McGahan said. “We’re naked because isn’t Mother Nature naked?”

While the event is technically a “First Amendment” protest, it still takes a lot of planning and is a year-long process. According to organizer Nancy Ring, finding a host venue can at times be difficult. 

However, Kochanski’s owner Andy Kochanski was happy to host. 

“We’ll host anything, and I’m excited to have them here,” Kochanski said. 

“Business has been great. We've been selling pieces and also just celebrating body positivity,” artist and vendor Jordyn Veronique said. 

Jankowski hoped that Milwaukee’s bike ride would beat Madison’s attendance record of 192 from last Saturday, and Milwaukee’s bikers did just that. 

Participants have even added layers to their bikes in celebration of each bike ride they participate in, even if they have no layers themselves. 

“I added an umbrella as a joke because these generally happen in the summer and it can get really hot,” Al Woyna said. “Then we added a horn and all of this other stuff. We have to do something new with each bike ride.” 

Some even have sets of flags on their bikes to share various political perspectives. 

“I am a conservative nudist,” Chuck Mills said. “These flags represent my love for my country and the constitution and to show people that it’s ok to love America.”

Mills had flags of the United States, Israel, Pakistan, the National Rifle Association, Jesus, Blue Lives Matter, and the LGBTQ+ community attached to this bike. 

For many of the participants in the Milwaukee ride, Saturday’s event was one of their first times in a nudist space.  

“Madison was my first last weekend and it just felt amazing,” Kelly Dawson said. “Now we’re here to continue our celebration of the human body and to just be body positive.”

With events in more than 200 cities, the World Naked Bike Ride's largest event is in Portland where roughly 10,000 people attend.