What is WORD?
What is WORD?
WORD, World Off-road Riding Department, is a youth mountain bike charity (NZ Charity Number CC50833) based in Aotearoa on a mission to help kids change their world one ride at a time. We run after school programmes, holiday camps, events and leadership training for 7-17 year olds in the Wellington Region. In 2013 WORD was founded by Ashley Peters.
Currently there are over 400 kids in our term programmes, 300 kids riding during the holidays, 60 Instructors and 35 Assistant Instructors.
Spreading the love of riding across Aotearoa. If you would like to know more get in touch - info@word.org.nz.
Our Mission
WORD (World Off-road Riding Department) is on a mission to change the world one ride at a time! We are committed and passionate about creating awesome experiences to build youth confidence, develop new friendships, and foster a life-long love of mountain biking. The WORD whānau believes in equity in order to reduce the barriers to participation, embracing change through honesty and kindness, and building connections within our community and environment.
Our Values
Youth Centered
Young people are at the heart of ALL decisions. For youth, with youth.
Adventure
We’re fun. We’ve got grit. We’re risk takers. We’re bravely kind.
Connection
Connection to self (confidence and being true to oneself ). Connection to others (sense of belonging and being kind to others). Connection to the environment.
Inclusion
We create access, support, and celebrate diversity + equity - always.
Embracing change
Embrace change: Gather the knowledge to inform and guide. We adapt. We are agile.
Our History
In 2013 WORD was founded by Ash Peters as a way to ensure young people had access to the same thing she was loving… the community of mountain biking. With a group of 11 girls, they went on the very first holiday camp in the Wellington region, followed by a 7 week term programme including boys. Over half of that original crew followed WORD all the way through their childhood!
In 2014 we officially became a charity and gained a board! Participation grew quickly with over 100 kids/term during the next few years. The instructors went from a few of Ash’s friends that she wrangled to over 20 amazing humans from a diverse background in the Wellington community. We experimented with trips away (yep, there was a time we thought a 7-9 year olds overnight camping trip was a good idea), a race team (that still managed to keep the WORD vibe even when competing), an assistant instructor programme (that now sees over 35 teenagers each year!), and a lot of snacks.
2021 was a big year for us launching in both Wanaka and Otautahi! We were stoked to see both of these communities really embrace the WORD vibe, although it wasn’t as easy as copy Wellington and there you go. It took time for us to get to know the community and meet their needs. Unfortunately we have made the difficult decision to not continue WORD in Otautahi as of 2023, and Wānaka as of 2025 due to funding and location support.
2025 marked an end of an era with our amazing Founder and CEO Ash stepping down from her role after an incredible 13 years. Nic Johnson the national operations manager has stepped up into Ash’s large shoes to fill the CE Role from January 2026.
2026 is going to be a HUGE year. A new van on the way, A new programme funded by Sport NZ, new sponsors on board, and working towards being one of the first programmes and organisations in the country to adopt the integrity code. More on all of this soon!
Where is WORD heading? We’re focusing on building our WORD whānau, more community events and rides, and making Wellington and WORD the choice for youth to participate in mountain biking, leadership and bike packing programme. We want to reach new areas where we can bring WORD to the people, but be based right here in Wellington. Think supercharged holiday programmes, workshops, and youth leadership.
And as always -no matter what’s next for WORD, we’ll be staying true to our values and ensuring we can keep changing the world, one ride at a time.
The WORD Impact
Find out more about who we are, how we roll, and the incredible impact we are having with the young people and the community. Great facts, awesome photos, and quotes that capture what makes WORD WORD. Enjoy!