BLAIRSTOWN -- There are fans who wake up with the sun to drive hundreds of miles away to a game that won't start for hours. Then there is Don Martini.

BLAIRSTOWN -- There are fans who wake up with the sun to drive hundreds of miles away to a game that won't start for hours. There are fans who tattoo their favorite team's emblems onto their skin, so that they can always be close the athletes they love. There are fans who toss aside the tux or the white dress to get married in football jerseys or baseball caps. There are fans. And then there is Don Martini.

Walking into Martini's Blairstown garage, one gets the feeling of riding in the Goodyear blimp as it soars over the Super Bowl. Giants Stadium looms into view in perfect detail: from the corkscrew parking garages, to the railings on the walkways. From the perfectly spaced red and blue seats to the handcrafted sky boxes, all the way up to the stadium lighting that fills the arena, the only thing missing is the roar of the crowd. The model stadium, if something that measures 20 feet long by 17 feet wide can be even be called a model, is a sight to behold.

Martini began construction on his stadium (which was modeled after the old one, not the "big new one" that he doesn't like nearly as well) in 2009 (or maybe 2010, because who can remember these things?), shortly before the real-life source of his inspiration was torn down.

"I guess some guys wake up in the morning and say �maybe I'll take up jogging or something,'" the 79-year-old architect said, smiling out from under his Giants cap, "I woke up one day and said �I think I'll build Giants Stadium!' So I don't know who's crazier, me, or the joggers."

The stadium took more than two years and around $10,000 to build, Martini said.

"I knew getting into it that it would be a major project," he said, "but to be honest, I never really thought about what I was putting into it as much as what I would be getting out of it."

In the end, what he got out of it is a near-perfect replica that has attracted the attention of curiosity seekers, admirers, news outlets, and even a few members of the New York Giants.

Former running back Tiki Barber and defensive end George Martin have both autographed the outer wall of the stadium. Photos of Martini with the players line the walls of the garage and the fireplace mantle of his house, prominently displayed between his grandkids' school pictures.

Recently, the stadium was featured on a YouTube documentary series called "The Coolest Thing I've ever Made." So far, the video has been viewed over 600,000 times.

"Really? That many?" said Martini, somewhat surprised. Though his workmanship and dedication to his craft are impressive, he is modest about his achievements, and credited the filmmakers with the success of the video instead. "They did a really good job on that movie. They had seen another video that a local kid made about the stadium a while back, and they called me up and asked if I could show it to them, so I said sure. They came all the way down from Canada to make it, so that was pretty neat."

The stadium, a labor of love if ever there was one, was inspired as much by Martini's desire to craft and create than it was by the team he so admires.

"I've always loved working with my hands," said Martini, gesturing around his backyard workshop. Pieces of this and that, models, replicas, furniture in various states of disrepair, and woodworking tools cover every surface. It is the perfect array of bric-a-brac and inspiration.

"Sometimes," he laughed, "I even finish a project or two."

The same creative desire that brought the stadium to life was also responsible for his ability to dedicate the time and resources that it took to build it. In his early 50s, Martini invented an aluminum woodworking jig. He sold the patent for the device, took the profits and retired early from his career as a science teacher in Parsippany. Since then, he has been dedicating his time to projects like the stadium.

Over the years he has also built four homes, including the one where he lives with his wife of nearly 55 years, Janice.

Gardens wind between the house, the gazebo, the workshop, and the garage where the stadium is kept. Like something out of a childhood fairy tale, model trains dart around the property, popping in and out of tunnels, traveling over bridges, passing beneath waterfalls, and making their way past a working lighthouse.

"He certainly keeps busy," said Janice Martini with a smile. "He finishes one thing and then moves on to the next. Never a dull moment."

Surprisingly, the lively property in Blairstown is also home to a quiet, beautiful, and peaceful retreat: an eight-seat luxury theater where Martini and his guests can relax and enjoy a night of opera on a huge projector screen.

"People see the stadium, and they see all of my sports stuff, and that's a big part of who I am. But I'm also a huge fan of the opera. Surprised?" he asked with a chuckle. Like the rest of his projects, he built his operatic retreat by hand, making sure to insulate the walls for soundproofing and install dimmer switches on the lights to recreate that "magic moment in the theater when the lights go down and the curtain goes up."

Of all of his projects, however, Martini said that the stadium was, by far, his largest undertaking. In total, he said, he worked on the project for about 10 hours a day until it was finished.

"I'm glad I built it," he said, "but I certainly wouldn't do it again."