A group of bikers embarking on a 2000 kilometre ride have a simple message.
"We want to get men to stand up, speak out and stop violence towards women," White Ribbon ambassador Ken Mahon said.
On Saturday, the 18-strong White Ribbon crew will leave Picton on their annual South Island odyssey, travelling down the West Coast to Invercargill and back up the east coast. Along the way, they'll stop at community and school halls to raise awareness of domestic violence.
While it's Mahon's first time captaining the event, he has five White Ribbon rides under his belt.
"You can see that work that's been done is starting to get out there," Mahon said.
"We often have people come to us the following year and say, you guys talking to us made us better: I got out of a bad relationship or something clicked and I got some help."
"You can see that work that's been done is starting to get out there,"
The "highly motivated" group is joined at each event by speakers with stories to share.
"People who have been perpetrators, and people who have been at the receiving end."
When the riders blast into town, people take notice, he said.
"There's an effect of 20 big bikers turning up and telling people to respect each other."
Mahon encourages bikers to join the crew, show up at the events and listen to the stories.
Even reaching one or two people will make the long journey worth it, he said.
"New Zealand has the worst [domestic violence] record in the western world. We're good at hurting our own families."
None of the riders are trained counsellors, but they can point people in the right direction, Mahon said.
This year, the ride is supported by Soroptomist International, who work to improve the lives of women and girls.
At the Nelson Market on Saturday, the organisation joined riders with a display of 20 pairs of shoes representing each woman or child who died last year.
The ride kicks off in Picton on Saturday November 16, stopping at Nelson's 1903 Square for an event at 10.30am,
For more information, visit https://whiteribbon.org.nz/act/white-ribbon-ride/
