coast to coast nude

Committed naturist Nick Lowe has achieved his goal of drawing attention to the ‘gonatural' brand by finishing the 2009 Coast to Coast naked from the waist down.


Gonatural is the common brand under which naturism exists in New Zealand and as well as his naked finish Lowe's kayak was emblazoned with the brand name to promote his cause.

Lowe wore a g string on the last cycle, which he then removed for the run to the finish line. He describes his motivation for nudity at the country's highest profile multisport event. "To bring awareness to the public of the god-given, and also legal, right we all have as individuals to be naked in every day situations, as long as one doesn't intentionally offend another."


The multisporter prefers to be naked in his personal life and whenever possible or practical he incorporates this into his sport. Says Lowe. "I often run naked and have devised a "back-shirt" so the mountain pack doesn't chafe my back. When coming out from country to built up areas I will cover up in order to keep the peace, but only minimally".

Most of the time the public are very accepting of Lowe's public nudity, but that does not extend to Wellington's transport system as he explains.



"One not so great Wellington day I set out from Petone in my kayak to circumnavigate the harbour. Upon reaching the main Queens Wharf (only just), the wind had got up to extreme danger and I could not paddle back to my car. The problem was that I could not catch public transport as I had no pants."

Lowe has also had encounters with other athletes out in the wilderness while training. "On Christmas Day last year I got up early to get in a 2 hour run in the hills behind Johnsonville before present-opening time. I was enjoying the run so much, naked, that I ran further than planned and when I came out of the hills back into suburbia I momentarily forgot about my lack of attire. I don't know what Jill Westernra thought when we crossed paths above Wilton's bush." Said Lowe. Westenra a 4x Speight's Coast to Coast champion confirmed the encounter "We were running the hills with a group of 6 friends when we saw him (Nick). It was kind of bizarre, he was definitely out there and with his Camel Back on and muscly legs looked like a serious runner. We all had a bit of a chuckle"

Despite the cold weather at this year's Coast to Coast Lowe enjoyed the experience and is hoping to promote the naturist cause again next year.

"I am currently looking at the logistics of doing the whole thing naked next year, but without compromising my performance too much".