By Bob Morgan

GREENWOOD, Ala. — Max Ard hopes to have the last laugh.

Max Ard, center, is shown with members of the Bon Secour chapter of the National Society Daughters of the American Revolution. Ard spoke to the group recently concerning a non-profit organization he heads that wants to preserve county history and the steam locomotive replica he hopes to have up and running by the first of next year. photo submitted

“My relatives have laughed at me for the last three years but a lot of them are seeing it might actually take place,” he said.

What he’s referring to is “The Baldwin County Express,” a replica of a life-size steam locomotive that will be able to travel the highways and byways of Baldwin County using regular gasoline, truck tires and “canned” train sounds. Ard is the idea-man and designer of The Express.

Indeed, The Baldwin County Express would be capable of traveling up to 70 miles an hour, according to Ard, but would never exceed 20 on roadways when it’s carrying passengers.

Yes, passengers.

Approximately 15 people will be able to ride in the “locomotive” and another 50 or so in the “railroad car” the engine pulls. There will be seat belts for all passengers.

“We’re striving to make it fully DOT (Department of Transportation)-road safe,” Ard said of the replica.

“The Pine Knot Special,” the steam class locomotive that operated in this area in the early 1900s, is the replica Ard is building. He originally planned to build the replica to promote Baldwin County’s upcoming bicentennial celebration.

“They liked the idea but the legal issues is what they were worried about,” said Ard of county leaders.

Ard had hoped to get county funding for his Baldwin County Express. Since that didn’t happen, however, he remains undaunted.

Indeed, where the project is concerned, Ard has gone from what he describes as “me as an individual three years ago” to 242 members today in The Baldwin County Express Inc. (BCEI), a non-profit organization submitting paperwork for its 501(c)3 status this week.

With the change in numbers has come a change in plans as well. The steam locomotive project is only a part of BCEI’s agenda today.

Ard cites three separate goals toward which BCEI is working.

The organization’s main purpose is operation of an online digital archive which is already in place at The Baldwin County Express Web site (www.baldwinexpress.org). A “historical preservation society” is the way Ard describes BCEI, which eventually wants to have a museum.

(Indeed, BCEI wants to develop affiliations across the country for the collection and preservation of historical documents, photographs and the like.)

Secondly, the organization, which was founded in January of this year with a five-member board of directors, wants to have an annual celebration/parade in the county using the train and additional “units” or cars as BCEI builds them. In the meantime, the train would be used for fund-raising events for BCEI.

In the more distant future, BCEI wants to eventually implement what Ard calls a “internet-mobile,” a big, RV-type bus that would have a “big satellite dish” and 20 different internet connections.

As Ard tells it, the internet-mobile would offer free internet access by which the public could learn about computers and the internet; learn how to become a BCEI member, recruit for the organization and create a personal user account; and bring historical items to the bus for scanning and archival use.

The internet-mobile could be an investment of as much as $200,000, according to Ard, who said BCEI will try to get a grant of some kind to help with funding. But, he said, BCEI would also schedule with local businesses willing to donate to the organization. The bus would come to their business sites, set up and provide free business advertising by means of the bus technology.

For now, however, Ard is hoping to have the steam locomotive replica ready by January 2009.

“It’s not going to be perfectly ready because of the money situation,” he said, noting the project is about 50 percent complete at present.

That notwithstanding, Ard has dedicated himself to personally run “The Pine Knot Special” every weekend of the bicentennial year when the county has a celebration or observance taking place. All he would ask is for the county to pay fuel costs, he said.

Likewise, he will take his train anywhere anybody or any municipality or group wants him, eventually even to Mobile, he said.

The locomotive Ard is building is 30 foot long, 12.5 foot tall and 8 foot wide. It sets on a 1988 Ford Econoline bus chassis. The “wheels,” 5.5 foot tall, won’t touch the ground but will turn by means of a motor system; the train will “ride” on truck tires. And the “steam” the train will emit from cylinders? Ard calls it “environmentally friendly” smoke.

Ard estimates it will cost approximately $1,000 for the metal to cover the chassis.

A former diesel mechanic and welder, Ard is now in hotel construction. His interest in history got a jumpstart about 20 years ago when he was researching his family history. (His family settled in the Greenwood community east of Summerdale in 1860.) One thing led to another and he began collecting digital images and copies of old photos. BCEI is the result.

Membership in BCEI is free. That’s a “Hobo” and all one has to do to hitch a free ride is click the “register” link on the BCEI Web site menu bar. A person gets five “Tracks” just for joining, Tracks are described by Ard as “interorganizational money.” A person can earn Tracks a number of ways, such as submitting photos for the archives and sponsoring other members.

One becomes a “Passenger” by donating $25 or 25 Tracks; “Porter” $100 or 100 Tracks; “Conductor” $200 or 200 Tracks; and “Engineer” $500 or 500 Tracks.

“Anybody that signs up online gets to ride (on the train) one time a year free,” said Ard, who estimates rides will cost approximately $5 per person.

“This would be a fun thing to do in retirement,” said Ard of taking “The Pine Knot Special” all over the county. It’s something he’s thinking about seriously.

BCEI meets the third Tuesday at 6 p.m. at the Summerdale Library. Donations to BCEI can be made to “Baldwin County Express” at any Citizens Bank branch. If all goes well, Ard notes that those donations will be tax deductible when the organization’s filing is approved.

Anyone wanting more information about BCEI or to schedule a speaking engagement with Ard concerning BCEI or the steam locomotive replica, call 269-1593.

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