Bay bikies are organising a charity ride in support of flood-stricken Edgecumbe residents later this month.
The SOS Edgecumbe Charity Ride on Sunday, May 28 will see a convoy of riders journey from Mount Maunganui to Edgecumbe.
Organiser Tony Ngawhika, of the Tauranga Weekend Riders group, said they would be taking donations of money, food and household goods with them.
He said invitations had been extended to other Bay of Plenty motorcycle clubs, and some local businesses had agreed to sponsor the ride. Anyone was welcome to join them and help support Edgecumbe people.
He hoped to have more than 200 motorcyclists taking part on the day.
He said he had spent a few weekends volunteering in Edgecumbe, helping people dig silt and debris out of their homes, and it was clear a lot of people were struggling.
"I just wanted to help the community. Acts of kindness are part of our kaupapa [principles], as a group.
"People think we're big scary bikers, but really we're caring people who want to help people out and put our money where our mouth is," Tauranga Weekend Riders member Hiria McRae said.
Money raised by $10 rider registrations, plus commemorative badge sales and donations, would go towards providing food, water, facilities, shelter and equipment for the cleanup.
Ride organisers wanted to give directly to the Edgecumbe community, so set up a special "SOS Edgecumbe" bank account. It is administered by two members of the Rangitaiki Community Board; Graeme Bourk and Evan Harvey.
Mr Bourk said they would distribute the money to people in the community who were "really hard up".
Some riders from Edgecumbe and the Eastern Bay of Plenty were planning to head over and ride with the group, Mr Bourk said.
Riders will meet at Club Mount Maunganui from 9am to register. The ride will start at 11am and end at 1.30pm at Edgecumbe Memorial Hall, followed by a gathering at Mount Mellick on their return to Tauranga.