Photo by Deb Gau Model plane enthusiasts shared some of their favorite projects at a show Saturday at the Marshall Area YMCA. The airplanes on display included aircraft made from kits as well as from scratch.

MARSHALL — Part of the fun of flying model airplanes is getting together with the people who share your hobby, said Marshall Radio Control Club president Vince LaPorte. On Saturday, model plane enthusiasts from Minnesota, South Dakota and Iowa were doing just that.

“It’s the comradeship,” LaPorte said of the gathering. Since flying model planes is mostly a summer activity, members of area clubs don’t always get to see each other often, he said.

The Marshall RC Club held its annual model airplane show at the Marshall Area YMCA this weekend. The Y’s multipurpose room looked a little like a hangar, with model planes of all shapes and sizes lined up on display.

The YMCA turned out to be a good venue for the show, LaPorte said. There was plenty of room, even for larger model planes.

The aircraft at the show ranged from kit-built planes to models of WWII aircraft and even some drones. Many of the entries at the show had stories behind them. One of the planes Terry Schweigert brought to the show from Sioux Falls was a biplane modeled after the “Weeks Special” aerobatic plane.

“A friend of mine built this, from plans and scratch,” Schweigert said.

Don Van Voorst, of Sioux Center, Iowa, said one of the planes he was showing was built by his son Dan, when Dan was 17.

“This airplane is 35 years old and it’s still in one piece,” Van Voorst said. The only change was a new motor he put in.

Van Voorst said he has been building and flying model planes for years. “It goes back to when I was a young guy out of the military,” he said. “I had an interest in anything that flew.” Van Voorst said he liked building planes from kits, or fixing up wrecked planes.

People at the show said the community and the fun of building model planes were big reasons why they’ve stuck with the hobby.

“It’s the camaraderie, and paying it forward,” Schweigert said. Other model plane enthusiasts will help each other out with builds, and if you need anything at a fun fly event, people will always lend a hand, he said.

“For me, it’s the challenge and the joy of building it,” Van Voorst said.