This was an OK experience, not as fun as I had hoped.

Things that were good:
- People were really nice
- It was useful, for the first time out, to be in an organized group. We knew what we were going to “be”, we had other bees to help us, we did street theater as a group, and got a lot of attention and applause
- Even if I looked only OK as a bee, we looked really great as an ensemble.
- Riding stoker on the tandem meant I could ride no handed and wave at the adoring crowds
- Our decorated bike looked fab
- At first it was weird to be naked; as more people came and were painted, being naked became normal.
- It got warmer as the day went on
- The paint acted as an exfoliant; my skin is silky soft all over
- I heard 308 people were nude cyclists that day

Things that weren’t as good
- We didn’t need to wake up as early as we did. We didn’t need to get there as early as we did. We could have slept another hour or so, arrived at the painting party 90 minutes later, and spent less time standing around being cold
- I believe some of the photographers are perves; don’t know what to do about that
- The tandem just isn’t maneuverable in a crowd
- I got tired of doing the street theater – I was ready to stop being a bee at the end
- David and I shed trillions of yellow flakes on the bike, in the car especially, and on our way to the shower
- We had a hard time finding our way back; we might have been better off parking in Fremont (since we were there so early), riding to the paint party, and then just loading up and leaving at the end. Instead, we rode blindly through city neighborhoods (me in my starkers, as I thought my clothes were stashed in the pannier; no, they were left in the car) trying to figure out how to get to where we had parked.

Overall, it was interesting and fun, but next year, I hate to say it – I think I’d rather do Flying Wheels!

(Edited to add link to PI article)