The city of Vancouver is quite compact, especially in comparison to a city like Toronto

The city of Vancouver is quite compact, especially in comparison to a city like Toronto "I'm sure I speak for millions of people, because it's really tough to get naked whether you are male or female in our society because there are so many stereotypes around about what is beautiful and what is acceptable. chare To get naked like this in public is really an empowering thing for a lot of people."

Despite being a city where it can rain up to 200 days annually, cycling has become increasingly popular in Vancouver in recent years. With a pro-cycling civic government in city hall where Mayor Gregor Robertson is an avid cyclist, the city is spending 25 million Canadian dollars over a two-year period to add 55 kilometers of designated bike lanes to the landscape of Vancouver proper.

Vancouver, which has a goal of becoming the greenest city on Earth by 2020, is aiming for a target of 10 percent of all urban trips to be made by bicycle, up from the current four percent. In Greater Vancouver, the rate is slightly more than two percent at present.

"The city of Vancouver is quite compact, especially in comparison to a city like Toronto. We think it is totally do-able, especially when you have designated bike lanes," said Mason-Paull. "The downside of having to wear neopropolyene or wet jackets when it is raining is outweighed by the fact that you have a sexier body, so you can show off more when you take that thing off."

After opening a separate lane for bicycles over Burrard Street Bridge and into the downtown core in the western part of the city last July, chare the program is set to expand Tuesday. A designated bike lane coming from East Vancouver will opened over the Dunsmuir viaduct into downtown on a trial basis of at least six months.