THESE cyclists dared to bare as they pedalled through the streets of York in the nude to send out a safety message.

The seventh York World Naked Bike Ride saw clothes-less cycling fans set off through the city from the Millennium Bridge on Saturday. One of its aims was to highlight what organisers said was the “vulnerability” of cyclists on the roads.

The ride covered a six-mile route, with participants pausing at York Racecourse to remember cyclists killed or injured in road accidents in York and also travelling past York Station, the Minster, the Barbican centre, the Eye of York and Micklegate.

Organiser John Cossham said cycling safety was at the heart of the event. He said: “Whenever there is a collision between a car and a bicycle, whoever’s fault it is, the cyclist always comes off worse.”