Seattle is exporting a couple thousand of our city’s bike-riding citizens this weekend, sending them 200 miles across the state to Portland (because, you know, they could use a couple thousand more people riding bikes there).

Cascade Bicycle Club’s annual Seattle to Portland Bicycle Classic leaves from the parking lot directly north of Husky Stadium tomorrow morning. 10,000 people are registered for the ride, which has sold out just about every year in the past decade. The folks doing the ride in one day will start leaving at 4:45 a.m. The rest of the riders will begin to leave at 5:15.

Groups will leave every ten minutes until 7:30 a.m. heading south on Montlake Blvd.

I would like to take a moment of silence to honor the countless Clif Bars that will give their lives this weekend so this ride may happen…

World Naked Bike Ride 2011

But, for those of you who are not riding to Portland, have no fear … literally. The 2011 Seattle World Naked Bike leaves the Olympic Sculpture Park Beach at 2 p.m. for a day-time tour of the city, including Capitol Hill, downtown and a stop in the Seattle Center Fountain.

A pre-ride party at the Underground Events Center in Belltown starts at 10:30 a.m. The ride will end back at the Olympic Sculpture Park Beach for a Seattle skinny dip record attempt.

The ride even has a promo video (It should go without saying that the World Naked Bike Ride video does, indeed, feature some naked people):

From WNBR Seattle:

Every year, in cities around the world, thousands ride bikes naked to celebrate human-powered transport and the power and individuality of the human body. WNBR demonstrates the vulnerability of cyclists on the road and offers a simple, cheap, healthy + fun alternative to car culture. We hope you can join us! Find out more about the international WNBR movement.

While we encourage riders to “bare as you dare” (it is Nude Recreation Week, afterall), nudity is not required or expected. Just come ride with us dressed for fun and spread cheer and inspire others with our pro-cycling message! You are always allowed to strip down as much as you like, when you feel comfortable. A swimsuit or undies are recommended if you want to go in the water without being naked.

Hazardfactory at West Seattle Fair

How could I forget Hazardfactory setting up near the Junction this weekend for West Seattle Fest? The industrial arts studio will be setting up Hack-Cycle on the west side of Alaska next to Junction Plaza Park.

Here’s the description:

Discarded steel bike frames will become new again before your very eyes!

With minimal tooling, powered partly by bicycles, Hazardfactory will cut, weld, harass and twist bikes into unnecessarily strange looking means of transport and so forth.

Help power the system, or possibly sign a waiver and try your hand at mig welding.  Bring a re-cycle-able steel frame bike, (complete bikes only please) and it will never be the same again!

And a schedule for the weekend of cycle-hacking, from Ali Brownrigg:

HazardFactory will be setting up on Friday, getting the tools working, sparks will be flying, etc. On Saturday, they’ll start the process of actually upcycling and remaking the bikes (more sparks flying) and Sunday there are plans for an informal parade to show off the new bikes they’ve created the previous two days.