#StreakWeek: Six things I now know about streaking!

This post is presented by Stanfields

Streaking.

If you told me I was going to spend an entire evening researching the origins of some people’s need for public nakedness, I would tell you this isn’t that kind of blog. But, after finding out about testicular cancer survivor Mark MacIntyre’s upcoming streak all-over Canada wearing nothing but a pair of Stanfield’s to raise awareness and funds for below-the-waist-cancers, I couldn’t help myself.

You might not know this, but testicular cancer is actually the number one form of cancer found in young men. It has affected approximately 1,000 Canadian guys in 2014 alone. As a still relatively young man, this is a stat that makes me pay attention and take looking into public runs of nudity with great diligence.

Before I could start my research I needed to clarify what it meant to ‘streak.’

There is a reason MacIntyre is wearing a pair of Stanfield’s for his journey, beside the fact it’s one of the 8 months of the winter in Canada and the man has to protect his goods – he probably doesn’t want to get arrested. That being said, according to a very reliable online language definition repository (aka Urban Dictionary) streaking is defined as,

“The art of running naked in public for laughs. Must be completely nude. Shoes, scarves and hats are optional. “

or

“to run around naked. thats it.” (sic)

The scholar who wrote the second definition wasn’t messing around. He’s a straight shooter, I like him. Run around naked. Got it.

After confirmation from Urban Dictionary, I began looking into the origins of streaking. From my extensive and eye burning research I have concluded the following:

• Streaking doesn’t have a high participation rate in Canada. One could blame this on the weather, the fact that our unofficial national sport is played on ice and/or we are just too prudish. (That last one might just be me, I don’t pretend to speak for the nation.)
• Streaking is most commonly practiced at sporting events with large fields. One would assume this is to give the streaker maximum exposure time with a long sprint before being tackled to the ground.
• There is a man in the UK named Mark Roberts who has made a name for himself by streaking, according to Wikipedia, over 500 times. He even has his own website with his ‘most famous’ streaks.

• Streaking was at its peak in the 70s. Time magazine called streaking a “growing fad” in 1973 and in 1974 the University of Georgia set a record having 1,543 streakers together at one time. Part of me is sad that I wasn’t a twenty-something in the 70s, the other part of me is overjoyed.

• Based on image search, men like to streak more than women…like by a lot.
• This is the most famous scene in Old School, or the most famous scene from any movie starring or partially starring Will Ferrell according to online enthusiasts.

As much as I am willing to try anything once, I have never felt the urge to run down the street in my birthday suit yelling, “We’re going streaking!”  Maybe it’s because I wasn’t alive in the 70s, don’t like sports and wasn’t in a fraternity.

Maybe if I had a good reason, like Mark MacIntyre and his streaking campaign, I might.

If you wish you lived in the 70s and have always wanted to get your streak on, you can join Mark and start your own fundraising effort.

Head to Stanfields.com to start. Once you have raised over $50 you will receive a pair of limited edition Stanfield’s #StreakWeek underwear to complete your mission.

All campaign joiners are encouraged to find an appropriate public space, strip down to their Stanfield’s and run like the wind!

You can also support the campaign by using the #StreakWeek hashtag on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram  between October 18^th and 26^th . For every hashtag used Stanfield’s will donate $1 to the Canadian Cancer Society, up to $25,000.