Floral Park man on a quest to visit all 126 LIRR stations

Like tens of thousands of Long Islanders do each day, Rick Guidal boarded an LIRR train at his home station on a recent Friday morning, bound for one of the railroad’s 126 stations.

But unlike most commuters, the Long Island Rail Road system wasn’t just a means of getting to his final destination. It was Guidal’s final destination.

“Certain towns that I’ve never visited, I’d like to see,” said Guidal, 69, of Floral Park. “But my goal is the train stations themselves.”

After stepping off the train at St. James, Guidal went through his usual routine: taking a selfie with the station sign, checking out historical artifacts — including a 19th-century potbelly stove — inside the station waiting room, and trying to get a flavor of the surrounding community. Then, he pulled some papers fr