From Bikinis to Snow Boots, US 41’s Seen It All

US Highway 41, a noteworthy cross-country highway, holds a special distinction for Ayres Associates. Not only have we worked on multiple projects along the road, but the highway also connects our offices from Florida to Wisconsin.

The two ends of US 41 could not be more different. The road starts its trek northward in bustling downtown Miami. It continues through eight states, ending at an unassuming cul-de-sac in tiny Copper Harbor, Michigan. There’s about a foot of snow on the ground today in Copper Harbor. The snow depth in Miami is – well, let’s just say it’s around 80 degrees there today. You can calculate the snow depth from that little bit of data.

Ayres business development specialist Rick Satterlee visited the spot marking the northern start of US 41, pictured above, while at an Upper Peninsula Road Builders’ Association summer meeting in Michigan.

Checking the view from the other end, US 41 gets out of crowded Miami, finds a peaceful ride across the Everglades, enjoys the view from its Ayres-designed bridge over Dona Bay at Venice, and comes within 5 miles of our southernmost office in Sarasota. (Ayres also designed several segments of US 41 in the Venice area.) It continues north, honking its horn as it zips within 6 miles of our office in Tampa. While in Florida, it fondly remembers having its bridges inspected by Ayres structural inspectors Rick Maslyn, who also have inspected some of the sign structures the highway goes under.

Then the highway cranks the tunes and steps on the gas as it travels through Georgia, Tennessee, Kentucky, Indiana, and Illinois. Soon after crossing into Wisconsin, US 41 can almost see our Waukesha office just 14 miles away. On its way north through America’s Dairyland, the highway fondly remembers the 18 miles of resurfacing Ayres designed in Fond du Lac County. And US 41 knows by name all the Ayres construction engineers and surveyors who have worked on its repairs over the years, including Jason Ingram and Ryan Beltrand, who came up from that just-honked-at Tampa office to pitch in on a construction project in Winnebago County.

Then the road comes within 2 miles of our Green Bay area office, slowing down through the construction zone of its Ayres-designed section, managed by Matthew Barr, before going to its final resting place in Michigan’s Upper Peninsula.

It’s quite a ride totaling 1,990 miles, connecting several of our offices from south to north. You can read more about US 41 at its Wikipedia page.