Tired of sitting in the library as your muscles deteriorate in a timeless, fluorescently-lit study-prison? Spending too much time in your room watching re-runs of “”Jersey Shore?”” Go outside and ride your bike. There are tons of great bike rides that start from the UA that will help you remember that the outside world still exists, and can be a great place to take a break from the daily grind. Here are a few.

3rd Street: A Biker’s Paradise

Want to head on your bike to Casa Video or see a flick at The Loft? Or maybe you just want to bike a flat road that is biker-friendly. Head east down the UA Mall and just keep going. The mall turns into East Third Street, a wonderful thoroughfare that goes through some of the best parts of the Sam Hughes Neighborhood, has bike-friendly street crossings and runs pretty smoothly all the way to Alvernon Way. Once you take this ride, you’ll never bike Speedway Boulevard — or fear getting hit by cars for that matter — ever again.

The Old Barrio

Head west from Old Main onto University Boulevard, and take a left on Fourth Avenue. Take the underpass and take a right at Congress Street, and a left on Stone Avenue. Keep going and around 17th Street you’ll hit Barrio Viejo. Unique houses, murals, endless alleys and streets; you could spend a lot of time just weaving around the neighborhood. For those who want go further, keep on Stone Avenue until it turns into Sixth Avenue, and turn left at 20th or 21st Street. You’ll hit Santa Rita Park where you can relax for a bit and take a drink of water, get a whiff of fresh grass and continue your journey, wherever it may take you.

Reid Park Zoo via El Con

This is a great ride for this time of year, when it’s still a little hot outside — best done at night. Head east down Third Street again, but this time turn right at North Dodge Boulevard. Once you hit East Fifth Street, you’ll see the El Con Mall. Enjoy the parking lots, a little-known biking treasure (that is, if it’s late at night and the lots are emptier than usual). Passing through El Con, head toward Broadway Boulevard and turn left on Randolph Way. This path will take you through the park and near the zoo. This is a great ride with a lot of grass and usually cooler temperatures than the rest of Tucson.

Aviation Bikeway/The Snake Bridge

No list of Tucson bike to-dos would be complete without the Snake Bridge. This giant rattlesnake-shaped bridge is part of the Aviation Bikeway, an outstanding path for bikers past downtown. Take University Boulevard to Fourth Avenue again, all the way past the underpass to Eighth Street. Take a left (head east) and turn right (south) on Hoff Avenue. Hoff turns into 10th Street, which has a small turn off on your right onto the Aviation Bikeway. Continue on Aviation Bikeway until you hit the Snake Bridge, which is around Broadway Boulevard. Continue on Aviation Bikeway until you hit Broadway, at which point it ends. You can take Euclid north back to the university, or go a little east on Broadway Boulevard to Tyndall or Park avenues for a little bit of an easier, less-trafficked ride.