Texas grandpa builds entire amusement park in back yard

March 7 (UPI) -- A Texas man has earned the eternal affection of his granddaughter by building her an entire backyard amusement park, including a roller coaster.

Jimmy White, 52, said he first started building in his Decatur yard when he learned he was going to be a grandfather, and his now-3-year-old granddaughter, Sophia, currently has a roller coaster, Ferris wheel, and carousel all to herself.

"Growing up, I didn't have much," White told ABC News. "But I always knew I wanted to build my grandchildren a roller coaster."

"I kind of saw them on TV, roller coasters, and they're just gravity fed," White told WFAA-TV. "I said, 'Well, I got something high, I could do it!' So I did it."

The roller coaster starts on a second floor balcony and circles the yard. The track is made from PVC pipe with wood and cement supports, and the car locks onto the truck with a wheel system strong enough to support a full-grown adult.

"I rode it all the way around," White said. "It was scary the first time, then I rode it all the time!"

White said he has no formal training in engineering, but he spent 20 years working in electrical maintenance, which he said gave him some of the skills he needed for the project.

"If I can see something and think of something, then I'll build it," White said.

He said the next addition to the backyard amusement park will likely be a chair swing or a mechanism for returning the roller coaster car to the start of the track at the end of the ride.