Dad has started tradition of every year creating a homemade Polar Express for kids to ride
- This dad has a Christmas tradition of recreating the Polar Express
- He’s done it for his daughter’s first two festive seasons
- He has no plans of stopping – with the project only getting bigger
Published on Dec 28, 2024 at 8:00 AM (UTC+4)
by Tom Wood
Last updated on Dec 16, 2024 at 7:03 PM (UTC+4)
Edited by
Amelia Jean Hershman-Jones
This dad has an incredibly sweet Christmas tradition of recreating the Polar Express for his daughter.
Sure, it’s only two years old, but all great traditions have to start somewhere, right?
This loving father has gone above and beyond to make his own replica version of the famous festive train, even getting into a costume for the big reveal.
On his Instagram page, he’s shared his wonderful creation.
DISCOVER SBX CARS: The global premium car auction platform powered by Supercar Blondie
You could be forgiven for getting a bit teary at this tale because it’s a real heart-warmer.
This DIY dad went to great lengths to create his own version of the Polar Express – made famous by the 2004 film starring Tom Hanks that follows a young boy’s adventure to the North Pole to visit Santa Claus.
Of course, the internet is awash with stories of parents going overboard for their kids – take this dad who restored a BMW Z3 for his daughter, for example.
Or – conversely – this woman who gifted her dad a car exactly like his old one.
It’s always lovely to see, and this story definitely fits the bill.
Recreating the Polar Express
Using his considerable craft and engineering skills, Mason Smith – @dadsocial on Instagram – spent three days making a huge train – complete with many carriages – bedecked in Christmas lights for his daughter.
If you didn’t do it for love, what would you do it for?
There were bumps along the way, including two ‘smashed fingers’ but in the end, the result is more than worth it.
It’s genuinely outstanding.
Unlike most of the great Christmas tales, this one starts with a lawnmower.
Mason took a ride-on lawnmower and made that the basis for his locomotive before then repurposing seven trailers as carriages.
After that, he created wooden shells for everything, rigged up a fog machine and some lights, then showed off his creation as part of a local Christmas parade for the children, handing out chocolate to everyone in the neighborhood.
It’s enough to make even the hardiest green villain’s heart grow several sizes – it really is.
A real labor of love
Explaining the pitfalls he overcame along the way, Mason wrote: “This is year 2 of a tradition that I hope lasts forever!
“Don’t let this video fool you. This little Polar Express took me [three] long days, [two] smashed fingers, 20 sheets of plywood, and a whole lot of Christmas spirit.
“And what you didn’t see is that [two] hours before the parade it came down to the wire, our generator quit working, the mower exhaust broke, and it started dumping rain, but we didn’t let that stop us.
“Because there was a dream that needed to be made…”
“To be [seven] years old in a parade with all your friends and family handing out chocolate in a city you love…
“Does it get much better than that?”
Probably not, to be honest.
His hard work didn’t go unnoticed, either.
One comment read: “I wanna ride in that and I’m an adult. What an awesome thing to do for kids for Christmas. I’m sure that was a lot of hard work.”
A second person gushed: “DAD. OF. THE. YEAR”
A third wrote: “You are truly one of a kind! Outstanding skills and a heart big enough to love the world!
“A huge round of applause! You’re amazing!”
It certainly is.
Here’s Mason’s video detailing how the whole thing came together.
