"Breaking Away" is more than a movie about teens and Indiana's famous Little 500. It's a cycling motto for leaving behind the desk, computers, fax machines and fluorescent-lit offices. It's about a need to get out on the road under your own steam and ride.

"It's about freedom and exhilaration," said Maggie Vogt, who earlier this month pedaled from Seattle to Vancouver, a cool 180-mile weekend joy ride with a clutch of bike pals. That's 90 miles each day.

But, Vogt is quick to say, while legs and lungs get a good workout, cycling vacations don't have to be endurance tests.

"You slow down to look at interesting things on the way and you meet great people," Vogt said.

Like the group of Dutch cyclists she met once cycling solo in Holland: "Only one spoke English, but they welcomed me on their ride and escorted me to the rail station in time for my train."

Sally and Dave Hall are experienced bicycle tourists who prefer self-guided touring. The Honolulu couple have ridden across the Mainland, biked Ireland, cycled southwest Utah from St. George through National Parks like Zion's Grand Staircase Escalante, pedaled in the Pyrenees through some of the famous cols (routes) of the Tour de France, and cycled in the Alps from Grenoble to Annecy.

"Our bicycle touring is unusual in that I do all the planning myself," said Sally Hall. "We ride by ourselves fully self-contained."

Sometimes, the couple are joined by a friend.

Last year, the Halls cycled the Cabot Trail on Cape Breton Island in Nova Scotia and covered 195 miles in six days. This summer they plan to cycle a section of the recently completed Route Verte across Quebec.

"I love the planning," said Sally Hall. "... And we both love the freedom and the independence. You really live in the moment."

"Cycling vacations" options are endless: the California wine country, Lake Champlain in Vermont, Texas blue-bonnet country, California's Pacific Coast Highway, the Viking trail in Eastern Canada, and, of course, the beautiful back roads and ridges around Bloomington, Ind., where the 1979 movie "Breaking Away" was made. Farther afield, cycling in Europe may take more planning and dollars, but there are plenty of companies to help spin your wheels in any country you choose.

OPTIONS ABOUND IN PLANNING YOUR PERFECT BIKE TOUR

Bicycle tours come a number of ways. You can travel with a big group, or as a couple. You can cycle 10 miles a day or 90. Ride with all your gear in bike panniers or on a supported tour where luggage is delivered by a "sag wagon" to your hotel.

"The combination of self-guided, support and cycling is really popular," said Tony Blakey of Lifecycle Adventures, a tour company based in San Francisco that organizes tours but does not cycle with you. "We build an itinerary around the dates you want to tour. We arrange accommodations, help with routes, transport luggage and make sure cyclists don't miss that hidden gem down the country lane that everyone will be talking about when you reach your place to stay.

"If you get lost, we're just a phone call away."

And, he added, smoothly ... they'll also transport the wine you may buy on our wine country tours to your hotel.

1. Self-guided tours: If you prefer to cycle at your own pace and meander along, stopping when and where you like, consider a self-guided tour. Companies such as Lifecycle Adventures, Randonée Tours and Back Roads will provide the bike, helmet, map and route book, and a phone number if you get in trouble. They also make hotel and restaurant reservations and move your bags between hotels.

Trips are designed around your travel dates and graded for beginner, intermediate or experienced cyclists. Kayaking, hiking, wine tastings and other activities may be included. Some routes will return you to the same hotel for two or three nights, which means you can choose cycling or another activity before moving to the next location.