Why Go: Diminutive Delaware may not have the kind of dramatic topography that characterizes most great cycling regions, but it does occupy some of the nation’s best oceanfront real estate. This ride takes in 38 beginner-friendly miles along its most famous Atlantic strands, from Rehoboth Beach (not coincidentally, home to Dogfish Head Brewery) down to Fenwick Island and back.

Why Go: Perched on the southern edge of the Colorado Plateau, just beneath the San Francisco Peaks at 6,910 feet, Flagstaff is a mild-weathered, Ponderosa pine-studded outdoor wonderland. Immediately south of the city, though, you can roll down the Mogollon Rim — a 2,500-foot escarpment marking the edge of the plateau — via Oak Creek Canyon to Sedona’s otherworldly red rock desertscapes.

Why Go: Not every ride in the Centennial State features lung-searing alpine climbs. On the Rockies’ Western Slope, where the Colorado River emerges from the Book Cliffs near Grand Junction, the little farming town of Palisade is a relative flatland of peach orchards, lavender gardens and, recently, an up-and-coming wine industry.