Where can you go for a naked bike ride without pedaling afoul of the law?
With World Naked Bike Ride kicking off this month, LawnStarter ranked 2023’s Best Cities for Naked Biking.
We compared the 200 biggest U.S. cities based on five categories. We looked at naked biking events, local interest in nude cycling, bikeability, and legal bumps in the road (like public nudity laws), among 11 total metrics.
Spin through our ranking below. To learn how we ranked the cities, see our methodology.
Contents
- City Rankings + Infographic
- Top 5 Close Up
- Key Insights
- Ask the Experts
- Behind the Ranking
- Exposing the Dangers of Road Cycling
City Rankings + Infographic
See how each city fared in our ranking:
Top 5 Close Up
Check out the slideshow below for highlights on each of our top five cities.
Naked Biking Popularity: 6
Cyclist-Friendliness: 22
Nudist-Friendliness: 1
Safety: 101
Climate: 123
Photo Credit: Kelly / Pexels / Pexels License
Naked Biking Popularity: 1
Cyclist-Friendliness: 3
Nudist-Friendliness: 67
Safety: 43
Climate: 26
Photo Credit: Tabitha Mort / Pexels / Pexels License
Naked Biking Popularity: 7
Cyclist-Friendliness: 4
Nudist-Friendliness: 4
Safety: 49
Climate: 32
Photo Credit: Josh Fields / Pexels / Pexels License
Naked Biking Popularity: 2
Cyclist-Friendliness: 2
Nudist-Friendliness: 25
Safety: 106
Climate: 28
Photo Credit: Roberto Vivancos / Pexels / Pexels License
Naked Biking Popularity: 12
Cyclist-Friendliness: 24
Nudist-Friendliness: 2
Safety: 182
Climate: 81
Photo Credit: Carlos Alfonso / Unsplash / Unsplash License
Key Insights
The Gist
Clothing-optional bike rides are taking place in 16 of the nation’s biggest cities this year, including Philadelphia (No. 1), Portland, Oregon (No. 2), and Seattle (No. 3). These cities cycled their way to the top with great bikeability and the event’s high popularity among locals.
On the other hand (or cheek), some cities in the South have a sore saddle when it comes to cycling in your birthday suit. Florida cities Pembroke Pines (No. 197) and Miramar (No. 199) land at the rear end of our ranking, alongside Arizona suburbs Glendale (No. 198) and Surprise in last place. Apart from the sweltering climate and poor biking infrastructure, these cities have very little interest in a nude cruise through town.
Standout Stats
- Philadelphia Freedom: In first place, Philadelphia streaks to the top overall and in Nudist-Friendliness. While there isn’t a sizable nudist population in the City of Brotherly Love, full public nudity is allowed in Philly — as long as you aren’t being “lewd.” It also is legal to be topless throughout Pennsylvania, making the city a beacon for biking in the buff.
- Riding Through Stumptown: Naked biking is most popular in Portland, Oregon (No. 2), with the highest Google search interest for the annual event. However, while there is a high population of nudist residents, it is not legal to be naked in public in Portland. Luckily, participants of the World Naked Bike Ride get a pass, thanks to a legal exception that takes place for nudity as an act of political speech.
- Disrobing Legislation: Public nudity is also allowed (everywhere or in certain places) in Seattle (No. 3), Austin, Texas (No. 5), Salem, Oregon (No. 17), and Miami (No. 20), making them ideal cities for stark cycling. Be careful biking bare in Arizona, which has the most severe penalties for public nudity violations. States with the least severe public nudity penalties include Hawaii, Nebraska, and Connecticut.
- Unclad Interest: Despite having the largest nudist populations in our ranking, Orlando, Florida (No. 107), Miami (No. 20), and Atlanta (No. 27) had not scheduled a naked bike ride at the time of writing. Atlanta bares its enormous interest — alongside Nashville (No. 144), Dallas (No. 58), and Denver (No. 21) — among the top 15 cities with the most Google searches for the event, despite having no naked ride planned for 2023.
- Weathering the Ride: Out of our top 10 cities, Portland, Oregon (No. 2), is likely to have the most decent weather for this year’s bike ride, with New York (No. 4) and Seattle (No. 3) trailing closely behind. It might be more challenging to ride through the elements in your natural state in Philadelphia (No. 1), Madison, Wisconsin (No. 9), and Milwaukee (No. 10), which have higher rates of precipitation and lower chances of sunshine.
Ask The Experts
It’s not every day you see naked flesh on wheels. If you’re new to this unusual pastime, gear up with some street smarts before taking your first naked bike ride to avoid snags along your path.
We reached out to some experts for insights and tips to help you steer clear of dangers ahead. Read their thoughts below.
- What are your top three tips for first-time naked bike riders?
- How does one gear up for a clothing-optional bike ride?
- Judging by the lack of nudist-friendly laws in the U.S., public nudity is considered taboo in our country. How likely is this to change in the near and far future?
- Some cities in our ranking registered high volumes of Google searches for the term “naked bike ride” over the past 12 months but ranked low overall, which suggests high interest in the event. What gives?
What are your top three tips for first-time naked bike riders?
- Find an event to join! It doesn’t have to be huge, just big enough that you’re not alone.
- Have a plan and know the laws. For example, In Burlington, VT you can be naked in public but you cannot get naked in public. It might also be nice to have clothes stashed somewhere so you don’t have to pedal home naked.
- Don’t forget the basics! Make sure you have a safe, working bike and all the accessories you might need. Shoes, helmets, lights, and a repair kit are all great ideas. Consider the time of day and consult local laws on lights and helmets.
How does one gear up for a clothing-optional bike ride?
It’s probably a better question to ask how to gear down. Get dressed for a regular bike ride and lose the clothes!
Judging by the lack of nudist-friendly laws in the U.S., public nudity is considered taboo in our country. How likely is this to change in the near and far future?
I don’t think this is likely to change in a big way anytime soon. There will continue to be thrill-seekers interested in things like streaking, naked biking, or skinny-dipping, but I don’t see a huge push to normalize public nudity. There are some real perks to wearing clothing and I think we can all agree there are more important issues to address in this country.
Some cities in our ranking registered high volumes of Google searches for the term “naked bike ride” over the past 12 months but ranked low overall, which suggests high interest in the event. What gives?
I question your assumption that elevated google search levels necessarily indicate local interest in participating. It seems that this apparently inconsistent combination of metrics might appear in locales that have a high degree of curiosity about naked bike rides as they occur in other places without interest in replicating those events. However, these cities are probably good picks for an aspiring ride organizer as this curiosity could likely be transformed into interest.
Behind the Ranking
First, we determined the factors (metrics) that are most relevant to rank the Best Cities for Naked Biking. We then assigned a weight to each factor based on its importance and grouped those factors into five categories: Naked Biking Popularity, Cyclist-Friendliness, Nudist-Friendliness, Safety, and Climate. The categories, factors, and their weights are listed in the table below.
For each of the 200 biggest U.S. cities, we then gathered data on each factor from the sources listed below the table.
Finally, we calculated scores (out of 100 points) for each city to determine its rank in each factor, each category, and overall. A city’s Overall Score is the average of its scores across all factors and categories. The highest Overall Score ranked “Best” (No. 1) and the lowest “Worst” (No. 200).
Notes:
- The “Worst” among individual factors may not be No. 200 due to ties.
- Disclaimer: This report is intended to provide entertainment value only. It should not be relied upon as a source of legal information. Our research on public nudity and toplessness laws is limited to aggregated data from several sources listed below, which may be updated without our knowledge. It is each reader’s responsibility to verify the current laws in their city and/or state.
Sources: City-Data.com, CriminalDefenseLawyer, FindLaw, Google Ads, National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, other LawnStarter studies, True Nudists, World Naked Bike Ride, and World Population Review
Exposing the Dangers of Road Cycling
World Naked Bike Ride is in full swing until September, with cities across the U.S. gearing up for the annual flash mob on wheels.
The global movement, with “bare as you dare” as its motto, started in 2003 to protest oil dependency. Today, the cause is targeted toward promoting safer cycling infrastructure and body positivity.
In the U.S., preventable bike deaths have risen 44% over the past decade, and they tend to peak in August. Thankfully, from protected bike lanes to bicycle boulevards to car-free streets, many American cities are working to improve bicycle safety.
Whatever you might do naked on a bicycle or in your garden is your business, but don’t ever mow your lawn naked — that’s dangerous. Hire a local LawnStarter pro to gear up and tackle your lawn care to-do list instead.
Media Resources
- High-resolution image of infographic
- High-resolution images of cities
- 2022’s Best Cities for Naked Biking ranking results
Main Photo Credit: Paul Sableman / Flickr / CC BY 2.0
