Straphangers will be taking it off again underground this Sunday
Multiple locations
Sunday, January 9, $2.25 (subway fare), 3:00-6:00
www.improveverywhere.com
For some reason, the new year in New York City has become associated with taking one’s clothes off. On January 1, crazy people strip down to their bathing suits and dive into the freezing cold waters of Coney Island. And on the second Sunday of the new year, we take off our pants and head underground. On January 9, thousands of people will take part in the No Pants! Subway Ride, not as a protest of the increased fares, but just because they can. (It’s technically not illegal as long as the exposure doesn’t get too indecent.) And the lunacy continues to spread around the world, as nearly fifty cities now stage affiliated No Pants! events. Started as a prank by seven guys in 2002, the ride, staged by Improv Everywhere, is now in its tenth year; it hit a small bump in 2006, when 150 people participated and 8 were arrested and handcuffed, but the charges were shortly dismissed. If you’d like to join in, keep checking the above website for specific meet-up locations, and be sure to follow the rules, which strongly suggest no thongs.