No Pants Subway Ride on DC Metro This Sunday

By MARY ANN BARTON (Patch Staff)

PHOTO courtesy of Capital Improv/No Pants Subway Ride 2016 Facebook page

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WASHINGTON, DC -- We’re imagining a group of tourists getting on the Metro Sunday afternoon, heading to the National Mall museums, when what do they see? A bunch of folks not wearing pants.

You’ve been warned: Sunday is No Pants Subway Ride — it’s an annual event in DC and in other cities around the world. It was started by Improv Everywhere in New York in 2002.

If you plan to participate, the weather forecast for Sunday in the DC metro area is a little on the chilly side — the National Weather Service predicts temperatures not getting any higher than 60.

The no-pants revelers will meet Sunday at 3 p.m. at Hancock Park by the L’Enfant Plaza Metro (at the corner of 7th, C, and Maryland SW) for a “brief pre-ride meeting,” organizers note on the group’s Facebook page.

Some tips from organizers, if you plan to join the fun:

• Bring a backpack or a bag to hide pants in.
• Make sure your SmartTrip or paper fare card is ready to go in advance.
• Some are welcome to “depants” while still outside, but in general most will tend to depants as soon as they board their first train... “especially because those initial reactions from fellow passengers are the best part,” organizers note.

The group says that if “anyone in authority” asks you to put your pants on, do as they say. But it sounds like Metro personnel are in on the joke: ”Fortunately, Transit Police have been in great spirits every year (we’ve been doing this since 2008!), and we’ve always had a great crowd joining us for the ride,” the group notes.