ESCANABA – The owners of more than 170 recreational vehicles have set up camp at the Upper Peninsula State Fairgrounds for the 51st annual Holiday Rambler Recreational Vehicle Club Eastern International Rally this week.

Rally coordinator Robert Larsen of Pine Ridge Estates, Florida, said the rally has gone smoothly since RV owners began showing up on last Saturday. The event officially began Tuesday and runs through Saturday.

“Everybody here in Escanaba has been so great to work with,” Larsen said.

The HRRVC is a club where owners of Holiday Rambler recreational vehicles can meet up and bond over their shared interest in RVs, Larsen said. The rally serves this goal by bringing club members from the United States and Canada to the same place for a week.

“(We) get our members together and meet people we haven’t met before,” Larsen said.

About 347 participants had driven 171 motorized and towable RVs to this year’s event, a total which Larsen said is roughly in line with other rallies in recent years.

During the rally, HRRVC members participate in activities such as sightseeing tours, informational seminars, and games. The club also elects its board of directors during the week.

This is not the first time the International Rally has taken place in Escanaba, Larsen said. It was last held at the U.P. State Fairgrounds in 1988.

“We were here for our 24th (international) rally,” Larsen said.