MARRERO, La – It’s not the entire amusement park.
There’s no Ferris Wheel.
But there is a train.
And WGNO News with a Twist fun guy Wild Bill Wood is ready to take you for a ride.
From the outside of the house, you’ll never know who’s inside the house.
But even after you meet the man of the house and you interrupt him from reading his favorite novel, you still don’t really know what’s on his mind.
You don’t know that.
You’ll never know that until you see what’s in his backyard.
His name is Gordon Payne.
And for Gordon Payne, what’s in his backyard is his electric train.
It’s a big train.
It’s big enough for family and friends to travel. Well, they get to take a five minute trip around Gordon’s backyard
It’s a one-man, one-acre engineered world.
Wild Bill Wood asks Gordon Payne, “why are you all aboard when it comes to trains?”
Gordon Payne says, “I love the engineering of the machine and the way it stays on the track.”
Over the last ten years, Gordon’s been building his train and laying his track.
It’s a dream for him.
A dream he’s had since he was an eight-year-old kid, in fact.
As Gordon gives Wild Bill the controls and turns over the engineering duties, Wild Bill says, “you can train anybody to move this locomotive.”
In real life, Gordon Payne is a University of New Orleans professor who’s always ready to teach somebody something about the railroad.
It’s a love he’s had longer than the love he’s got for his wife Alicia.
Wild Bill says to her, “you’re married to this trainiac!”
Alicia Payne responds, “guilty as charged.”
Wild Bill wonders, “ever thought of getting a one-way train ticket out of here?
Alicia says, “my sister-in-law is a lawyer and she’s made the offer, but so far, I have not taken her up on it.”
Nothing could ever derail Gordon Payne from what he loves.
He’s the sixty-something kid who’s never late for the train.
And that’s probably because it never leaves his Louisiana backyard.