Quote:
Originally Posted by preuter53
I know the girl in your photo there (and her sister) that rode have spoken about the impact the pictures have had on them.
They’re not naive, they knew what they were getting themselves in for, they’re not unknown for that sort of thing. 2014 made them famous though, hence they toned it down in latter years/stopped going.
They’re aware the pictures are out there and they know it’s not something they can really combat, so they just move on. A luxury for them to a certain extent.
It’s an evolving world. One, the technology available to find people is far better- facial recognition is easy to come by. Two, the rides are far more famous, it’s a fixture of the year; so it’s easier to attract photographers. A lot of which end up being simply there to take pics of naked women whilst fully clothed.
This means less women feel brave enough to do it. Then the rides crack down on photography, which makes it an unfriendly atmosphere. Which then pushes riders away.
I reckon the WNBR heyday has been and gone. Sad times, but it was always a risk.
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For myself, if anyone has ever contacted me and asked me to remove photos of them (from WNBR or any other event), I've done so. Last year a couple did the London ride and were taken aback at the number of people there were with cameras/phones/vidcams. I was asked if I'd take the snaps I took of them down and did so, as did Steve (GHPartyPics).
I've only seen photos of the twins that (I at least would consider) are positive. They took part in several of the Brighton rides and seemed to have a great time. It's very telling that the one year when there weren't marshals constantly harping on about snappers, that was also the one that saw easily the biggest pool of photos from any UK ride. There was a party atmosphere that day.
Given that this event uses nudity as its unique selling point, and needs publicity to survive and thrive, the ridiculous behaviour of the new Brighton organisers is seriously damaging. Them constantly posting on Facebook about nuisance photographers does nothing to deter the die hard pervs, but it does put people - particularly women - off taking part. One regular rider (female) told me that the 2024 ride was one of the most depressing and hostile events of any kind they'd taken part in and vowed never to do it again. Because of the organisers, not because of people with cameras.
The WNBR UK heyday is long past. 2021 and 2022 were something of a last hoorah following the Covid lockdowns. I doubt this event will happen many more times. The relentless hostility to photographers means that many no long cover these rides and most of those who do no longer put their snaps online.