Where We’re Riding — September 2026

A monthly series from Allen

September might be cycling’s most underrated month.

The intensity of summer begins to ease. Roads and trails grow quieter. Morning air carries a little more bite, and the changing light makes familiar landscapes look different again. In many parts of the world, it’s one of the best times of year to be outside on a bike.

This month, we’re following that changing season around the globe.

We’ll ride one of Australia’s great coastal roads, head deep into the mountains of Idaho, and then travel to northern Japan for a different kind of cycling adventure, one where what happens after the ride may be every bit as memorable as the ride itself.

Australian coastline. Idaho gravel. Japanese countryside.

Three very different places. Three very different ways to keep exploring on two wheels.

Welcome to September.

Europe / Rest of World Spotlight

Amy’s Great Ocean Road Gran Fondo — Lorne, Australia

Road | September 13, 2026

For one Sunday in September, one of Australia’s most spectacular coastal roads belongs to cyclists.

Few cycling events can claim a setting quite like this one.

Starting in the seaside town of Lorne, Victoria, Amy’s Great Ocean Road Gran Fondo takes riders through the forests and rolling terrain of the Otways before bringing them back along one of the most spectacular stretches of coastline in Australia.

And on September 13, cyclists get something normally impossible here: the road to themselves.

The 122-kilometer Gran Fondo is held on fully closed roads, with both a UCI age-group race and a recreational category for riders more interested in the experience than the result. The route loops inland from Lorne through Deans Marsh and Forrest before reaching the coast near Skenes Creek and following the Great Ocean Road back to Lorne. 

For riders looking for something less ambitious, the 45-kilometer Medio Fondo starts in Apollo Bay and follows the coastal road back to Lorne, also completely closed to traffic. A new 90-kilometer out-and-back option was added for 2026 and has already sold out. 

There’s even a Family Fondo, a free 2.7-kilometer closed-road circuit in Lorne for riders as young as six. It’s a nice reminder that a great cycling weekend doesn’t have to be about who reaches the finish line first. 

The event also has a purpose beyond the ride. It was created following the death of Australian elite cyclist Amy Gillett and continues to support work aimed at making Australian roads safer for people on bikes. 

But even without an event number pinned to your jersey, this stretch of Victoria belongs on a cyclist’s travel list.

Ocean on one side. Forested mountains on the other. Small coastal towns waiting farther down the road.

Sometimes the route really is the destination.

Amy’s Great Ocean Road Gran Fondo — Official Site

United States Spotlight

Rebecca’s Private Idaho — Sun Valley, Idaho

Gravel | September 9–12, 2026

Big mountains, endless gravel and plenty of room to disappear for a while in Sun Valley, Idaho.

The name tells you almost everything you need to know.

Rebecca’s Private Idaho takes riders out of Sun Valley and Ketchum and deep into the surrounding backcountry, where gravel roads climb through high mountain basins and stretch toward some of the wildest landscapes in the American West.

Created by endurance cycling legend Rebecca Rusch in 2013, the event has become one of the best-known gatherings on the U.S. gravel calendar. But what makes it particularly interesting for Where We’re Riding is that you don’t need to approach it like a professional racer to be part of it. 

For 2026, Rebecca’s Private Idaho runs September 9–12, moving off the busy Labor Day weekend for the first time. The organizers expect the change to mean fewer crowds, less traffic and better lodging availability around Sun Valley and Ketchum. 

Saturday’s main event offers several very different ways to experience Idaho, from the approachable 19-mile Tater Tot to the new 118-mile Fully Loaded route, which ventures into the remote Copper Basin. For riders who want to make a bigger trip of it, the optional Queen Stage Race adds multiple days of riding through the mountains. 

But the miles are only part of what makes this one worth the trip.

There are shakeout rides, an expo, food, local beer and a fundraiser supporting the Be Good Foundation. Then there’s Sun Valley itself: a mountain town where the riding may be what brings you there, but the people, scenery and time spent off the bike are good reasons to stay a little longer. 

Come for the gravel. Stay for Idaho.

Rebecca’s Private Idaho — Official Site

Adventure Beyond the Ride

Hokkaido, Japan — Ride. Soak. Eat. Repeat.

Some of the world’s best cycling destinations aren’t memorable only because of the riding.

They’re memorable because of everything surrounding it.

And there may be no better place to start than Hokkaido.

Japan’s northern island offers a very different cycling experience from the neon-and-density image many travelers associate with the country. Outside the cities, Hokkaido opens into vast agricultural landscapes, volcanic mountains, forests, lakes and wonderfully quiet country roads.

September makes the proposition even better. Summer humidity begins to retreat, temperatures cool, and in the mountains the first signs of autumn can begin to appear.

This isn’t necessarily a trip where you need a number pinned to your jersey.

Bring the bikes. Pick a direction.

And explore.

RIDE

The countryside around Biei and Furano is an ideal place to begin.

Roads roll through enormous fields and small farming communities, with the Tokachi mountain range rising in the distance. Traffic can be remarkably light, and the landscape encourages exactly the kind of riding we like: choose a road because it looks interesting and worry about where it goes later.

Farther afield, Hokkaido offers everything from lake loops to volcanic climbs and long routes connecting small towns. The island is big enough that you could build an entire cycling vacation around it without riding the same kind of landscape twice.

But this is Adventure Beyond the Ride.

So eventually, park the bike.

SOAK

Hokkaido sits on intensely volcanic terrain, which means hot springs are scattered across the island.

Some are polished resorts. Others are simple outdoor baths surrounded by forest and mountains. Either way, the formula is difficult to argue with:

Ride for several hours.

Find an onsen.

Lower tired legs into naturally heated water.

Stay there until getting out seems absolutely necessary.

We can't promise it's scientifically optimized cycling recovery.

We can promise you won't care.

EAT

Then there’s dinner.

Hokkaido is one of Japan's great food destinations. The cold surrounding waters produce exceptional crab, scallops, salmon and other seafood, while the island's agricultural interior is famous for vegetables, corn and dairy.

And after a cool September ride, there are few arguments against a steaming bowl of Sapporo-style miso ramen.

This is not the destination for obsessing over race weight.

It's the destination for earning dinner.

EXPLORE

And there is absolutely no requirement to ride every day.

Hike through the volcanic landscapes of Daisetsuzan National Park. Walk along the shore of a caldera lake. Explore one of Hokkaido's smaller towns. Or simply take a day off and let someone else cook.

That's really the point.

The bike gets you here.

It doesn't have to dictate the entire trip.

HOW TO GET THERE

Hokkaido is a big island, and that’s part of the appeal.

Most international travelers will arrive through New Chitose Airport, near Sapporo. From there, renting a car gives you the freedom to build a trip around several riding areas rather than staying in one place. Furano is roughly two hours away by car, while Biei is farther north. Another option is to connect through Tokyo and fly into Asahikawa Airport, an especially convenient gateway for Biei and Furano. 

And this is one trip where bringing your own bike can make a lot of sense.

Pack it for the flight, rent a suitable vehicle when you arrive, and a portable rack such as the Allen Smart Suction™ GOcan give you a way to transport your bike without depending on a rental car having a permanent rack installed.

That freedom matters in Hokkaido.

Spend a few days riding the farm roads around Biei. Drive south toward Furano. Head toward the mountains for an onsen. Change plans because somebody at dinner tells you about a road you hadn't considered.

Bring the bike. Bring the rack. Let the trip develop as you go.

 Ride: Quiet agricultural roads, volcanic landscapes, mountain routes and lake loops.

 Soak: Make an outdoor onsen part of the post-ride ritual.

 Eat: Fresh seafood, Sapporo-style miso ramen, local vegetables and Hokkaido dairy.

 Explore: Volcanic landscapes, caldera lakes, national parks and small towns.

Don’t Miss

Eat: Fresh Hokkaido scallops or crab followed by a bowl of miso ramen.

Drink: A cold Sapporo after the ride.

Recover: An outdoor mountain onsen.

Experience: An early-morning ride through the Biei countryside before the roads wake up.

Hokkaido Official Tourism

There’s a wonderfully simple rhythm to a trip like this:

Ride. Soak. Eat. Sleep. Repeat.

It’s cycling travel without the need for a starting gun.

The Road Keeps Going

Australia’s Great Ocean Road. The gravel backroads of Idaho. The open countryside and hot springs of northern Japan.

Three destinations that couldn’t look more different, but they share something we love about traveling with a bike.

The bicycle changes the way you experience a place.

You notice the landscape differently. You stop in towns you might otherwise drive through. You find roads you would never have had a reason to explore. And sometimes the ride leads to something completely unexpected: a great meal, a mountain trail, a swimming hole, a vineyard, or in Hokkaido’s case, a steaming outdoor hot spring.

That’s where Where We’re Riding is headed.

We’ll continue highlighting the events worth putting on your calendar, but we also want to explore the places where bringing a bike can become the starting point for a much bigger adventure.

Because sometimes the best cycling trip isn’t really just a cycling trip.

It’s a great trip that happens to include some unforgettable rides.

Coming in October

The seasons keep turning, and so will we.

October brings some of the best riding weather of the year: cooler mornings, changing colors and destinations settling into a quieter rhythm after summer.

Next month, we’ll find another event overseas worth traveling for, head somewhere in the U.S. where autumn and two wheels belong together, and continue Adventure Beyond the Ride with another destination where the bike is only the beginning.

New roads. New adventures. Same reason to keep moving.

See you in October.