Could You Drive All 11,800 Feet of Wisconsin’s Longest Bridge?
Everyone knows someone who is terrified to drive on long bridges. The anxiety level would be incredibly high when driving this mammoth bridge in Wisconsin.
The Fear of Driving Over a Bridge
So, who is the person you know that has a fear of driving over bridges? And, that fear likely takes hold long before the wheels hit the bridge. Just the thought of that drive can cause panic.
That's the story of my wife.
Gephyrophobia (pronounced jeff-i-ro-fo-bia)
people with an intense fear of driving over a bridge.
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I saw a picture of a bridge in my home state, Wisconsin, and I gasped at how this will definitely be a bridge I'll never be a passenger on when driving over it. Sightseeing from big bridges is not a pastime I get to enjoy because a bridge this size means I'm in the driver's seat.
The Longest Bridge in Wisconsin
With a span of 11,800 feet, the Richard I. Bong Memorial Bridge is the longest one in the state of Wisconsin, according to the story I discovered at AZ Animals.
The Bong Bridge, as it's more commonly known (no kidding! lol), connects the cities of Superior, Wisconsin, and Duluth, Minnesota, and stretches over the St. Louis River.
These photos provided by Joe Polecheck Photography, show the beauty of the structure that gets pretty much lost on people with gephyrophobia.
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The article also shared some interesting facts about the construction of the Bong Bridge, none of which will make my wife want to drive over this beast more.
- 8,300 feet of the bridge is over water
- 54 miles of steel poles were each pounded over 200 feet into the river. Each one can support 150 tons
- In total, 31,000 tons of steel and 82,000 cubic yards of concrete were used to build the bridge
The bridge gets its name from a WWII fighter pilot, Richard Ira Bong. Bong, nicknamed the “Ace of Aces” was from Poplar, Wisconsin.
During his fighter pilot career, he flew on more than 200 missions and knocked down 40 enemy planes.