PORT GAMBLE — In the early morning light the whirring of a radio-controlled model plane can be heard from Highway 104 near Port Gamble.

An electric plane, controlled by Dale Olsen, launches into the air from the grass field that acts as a runway for the Olympic Radio Control Association.

“Flying model planes is a hoot … a whole lot of fun,” Olsen said.

As active president of the association for the past two years, Olsen is in charge of one of two clubs devoted to flying model planes in Kitsap; the other is the Kitsap Aircraft Control Society located in Port Orchard.

The association has about 50 members and hosts two flying events each month along with a members meeting once a month.

Beginning in 1997, the founders of the association started their own model airplane club after the Aircraft Control Society moved their airfield from Bremerton to Port Orchard. The drive out to Port Orchard was too long to make on a regular basis, so the association acquired field space of their own from Pope and Talbot, which leases the land.

The club hosts point-based competitions and Guttersnipe Pylon racing — using plastic gutters normally used for downspouts on houses and turning them into planes. The club is also planning on starting fun flies for the summer, where competitions will last through scheduled weekends.

People of all ages attend the events, but Olsen said the majority of the members are middle-aged or older.

“We try to get younger people involved; it’s a great activity,” Olsen said. “It can also be extremely expensive.”

This does not keep young Kitsap residents from enjoying the hobby.

A few students from Kingston Junior High School occasionally show up to the field to fly, KJH teacher Mark Stebbing said. Stebbing teaches seventh-grade science and eighth-grade math. Occasionally, he brings his science class out to the KJH football field to fly planes that he purchased with a small grant.

Stebbing will show up to school early during the academic year and fly his plane from the football field.

“Some people get a good laugh at seeing me out there in the mornings,” Stebbing said. “The kids get a kick out of it.”

As a teacher, Stebbing uses summer vacation to get out to the field to fly as much as he can, but not as much as he used to. Last summer he only missed six days of flying during a three month period.

Stebbing began flying three years ago and found it more difficult than he thought it would be. He bought a $100 plane which he crashed the first time he put it in the air. Then he bought another. After multiple crashes, Stebbing decided to seek out someone with more experience and joined the association.

Stebbing is not the only person with the need to fly. The majority of people who start flying model planes end up with a collection of planes.

When Olsen first began flying he started with one plane and thought it was the only one he would need, he said he now owns about 20 different planes.

Flying model planes requires a good amount of hand-eye coordination, which is why Olsen found himself so intrigued, he said. The learning curve for flying was nothing like Olsen had ever tried before, and he said he liked the new found challenge.

While flying model planes is difficult, club secretary Richard Magnuson said younger people catch on quickly because of an increase in their hand-eye coordination, thanks to video games. He said his sons interest in flying is what got him started and when his son got older and lost interest, he stuck with the hobby.

“My son was able to land a plane by his third flight,” Magnuson said. “It took me a lot longer to get it down, but now I can’t stop flying.”

The ease of flying also depends heavily on what type of plane is being flown: electric, which tend to be newer models and easier to fly; or alcohol or gas-fueled. Electric planes are more expensive, but handle smoothly.

The open field in Port Gamble also helps out beginners and Olsen said the quality of the field is not something all radio-controlled clubs enjoy.

When the association was first allowed to lease the land, large piles of sawdust were spread throughout the area. Now the land is clear, with a workbench that stretches along a large patch of neatly cut grass that acts as the take-off and landing strip.

The problem with leasing the land from Pope & Talbot, Olsen said, is the lease is simply a verbal agreement that the association is allowed to be there. This means if the town of Port Gamble needs the space for things such as overflow parking, the association must step aside.

“Flying model planes is not exactly the safest thing,” Olsen said. “We can’t put people’s safety at risk so we can have fun.”

To fly with the association it is required everyone is properly insured to fly the model planes through the Academy of Model Aeronautics. The club has meetings at 7 p.m. on the second Wednesday of every month at the Poulsbo Fire Department, 911 Liberty Lane. The public is always invited. A $25 membership fee is required for anyone who wants to join the club.

“Once you have the bug, you can’t stop flying,” Stebbing said.