Got To Get Out is a registered New Zealand charity (CC64454) focused on getting people active, connected, and outdoors through community adventures and recycled bikes.

After leaving the corporate world while trekking in Nepal, Robert Bruce founded Got To Get Out in 2014. Since then, the social enterprise has grown into a community-driven organisation helping people explore Aotearoa, connect with others, and keep bikes out of landfill through repair and rehoming programmes.

Read more about our two main projects below.

Got To Get A Bike

Got To Get A Bike is our major project of diverting unwanted bikes from landfill or scrap metal, repairing these with community helpers, then re-homing them by either gifting to those in need or selling them cheaply. At our Got To Get Out Workshop, we take unwanted bikes and restore them with care, and make them available to you at affordable prices.

Since 2024 Got To Get Out has:

  • Rehomed around 2,000 bikes via gifting & sales,
  • Taught dozens of young people valuable life skills – how to fix a bike, and diverted hundreds of tonnes of waste material out of scrap metal or landfill.

If we aren’t giving bikes away for free in our Ride It Keep It program, we are selling them as cost-effectively as possible in our Got To Get A Bike online store or in person at the Zero Waste Hub on Saturdays. We also take our bikes to various markets around Auckland on some Sundays to help get them into the community.

The Got To Get Out Workshop is where bikes get a second chance. Based inside the Wairau Zero Waste Hub at 9 Porana Road, Glenfield Auckland, the workshop is home to hundreds of repaired, revived, and rehomed bikes every year — with even bigger plans for the future.

Every week, hundreds of bikes are thrown away across Auckland. Thankfully, many of them find their way to us through inorganic collections, community donations, and generous locals dropping off bikes they no longer need. Instead of ending up in landfill, these bikes are rebuilt, repaired, and put back into the community.

The workshop runs much like a professional bike shop, complete with tools, workstands, spare parts, and experienced mechanics — but with a strong community heart. Thanks to donated bikes and the support of volunteers, we’re able to repair bikes at much lower costs while helping more people get riding.

Our volunteers come from all walks of life — local schools like Westlake Boys High School, retirees, unemployed community members, bike lovers, and even international travellers wanting to give back during their time in Aotearoa. Along the way, volunteers learn practical mechanical skills, meet good people, and become part of something with real community impact.

And honestly… there’s always another bike waiting to be fixed.

We’re always on the lookout for more volunteers

Created by Got To Get Out in 2024, Ride It Keep It is a unique programme that combines social adventures, bike skills, and community connection — with participants receiving a free refurbished bike to keep at the end.

The idea was simple: make cycling more accessible, more social, and way less intimidating.

Participants learn how to ride safely, maintain their bike, and join guided group rides — all while building confidence and connection with others. Then at the end of the programme, the bike goes home with them.

The concept was first piloted in 2025 through Auckland Council’s Live Lightly climate fund, helping encourage more people to swap car trips for cycling. In 2026, the programme received further support from Auckland Transport, focusing on the Glen Innes community where major investment had been made into cycling infrastructure, but access to affordable bikes remained a barrier for many locals.

Ride It Keep It programmes can currently only run when funding allows, so we’re always keen to connect with donors, sponsors, and funding partners who want to help us put more bikes into the community — and get more people out riding.

If we aren’t giving bikes away for free, we are selling them as cost-effectively as possible via our Got To Get Out store, or in person at the Zero Waste Hub on Saturdays. We also take our bikes to various markets around Auckland on some Sundays to help get them into the community.

Income from the sale of recycled bikes helps cover the costs of the tools, parts, some labour, and enables our charitable activities to continue.

All bikes sold by us are repaired to a high standard by a mixture of trained professionals and volunteers.

  • deep clean of the whole bike,
  • replace cables, chains, bearings, brake pads as needed
  • rust removal and painting as needed
  • new tires as needed
  • trued wheels
  • all gears adjusted and working well.
  • safety checked and ridden extensively before sold.

Bikes are sold with a three month mechanical warranty and we are happy to refund repair or replace bikes as per the NZ consumer guarantees act.

#GOTTOGETOUT

What started as a simple question from Robert — “Who’s got to get out with me this weekend?” quickly grew into a community of people wanting to explore, connect, and adventure together.

Whether it’s a local social ride, a weekend escape, a community event, or a spontaneous adventure, the mission has always stayed the same:

Creating affordable, community-driven experiences that bring people together through shared adventures, good energy, and celebrating New Zealand’s vast outdoor experiences. Led by Robert Bruce, Got To Get Out has also taken groups on adventures to Nepal several times over the years.

Got To Get Out has become more than just trips and events, it’s been a place where friendships, relationships, and lifelong memories have naturally grown along the way, with some people even making Got To Get Out a regular part of their social lives.

When you’ve just Got To Get Out follow us @gottogetout_adventures

Back in 2014, Got To Get Out began with free group adventures around the Waitākere Ranges and regional parks across Auckland, organised through Facebook and open to anyone keen to join. What started as a few people getting outdoors soon turned into a thriving adventure community, with up to 50 people showing up for walks, socials, and weekend missions.

As the community grew, so did the adventures. Local day trips expanded into affordable weekend tours across Aotearoa, with rented vans and buses heading to iconic spots like Waitomo Glowworm Caves, Tongariro Alpine Crossing, and Coromandel Forest Park.

With growing demand came the need to rapidly develop guide training, health and safety systems, and Department of Conservation concession requirements. Since then, Got To Get Out has hosted nearly 1000 safe outdoor adventures, with more than 15,000 people joining trips across Aotearoa. Today, Got To Get Out holds a Department of Conservation concession for commercial guiding on Crown land.

Now operating as a registered charity, Got To Get Out is cooking up a fresh wave of adventures, socials, workshops, rides, trips, and community experiences — creating even more ways for people to connect, explore, and simply get out there together.

Total events
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Total calories burned
Improved mood (in %)
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Check out our Instagram!

Christopher Chase

Eonel Barut

Gabriella Morton