Safety Beyond the Boat
Distracted Boating is the number one cause of boating accidents each year. HEY WAVE visibility "wristflags" were developed to protect our loved ones from unaware boat traffic in crowded waters. What should be a fun filled day on the water should not include anxiety and worry, or worse. Added visibility and just a few seconds of reaction time can prevent boating accidents and save lives. HEY WAVE places safety in the hands of the rider giving them a sense of security and control over their environment.
HEY WAVE is the new water sports norm for Safety Beyond the Boat.
Watch HEY WAVE in action!
Designed for Comfort and Safety
HEY WAVE wristflags are made entirely of quality all weather, high visibility materials designed for style and comfort to the water sport participant of any age. They simply wrap around your wrist with a one size fits all elastic band and velcro tab.
The downed rider manually deploys and waves the alert flag while in the water notifying the captain of their location and increasing visibility to oncoming boaters. Once the rider is in a safe position the alert flag is simply wrapped back into a caution wristband. HEY WAVEs do not impede water sport performance, even when fully deployed.
From tubing to boarding, swimming at the beach or water park... have fun and be safe with HEY WAVE!
THE ORIGINAL HEY WAVE
The Original HEY WAVE Wristflag is a one-size-fits-all, high-visibility flag (2”x19”) comfortably wrapped around the wrist of any water sport participant. In distress situations, the wristflag can be easily unwrapped and deployed to alert captains of their location while increasing visibility to oncoming boaters.
EXPANDED LINE OF SAFETY PRODUCTS
The boating and water sport industry has seen unprecedented growth in recent years as more people escape to the water. With this increase also comes obvious safety concerns with overcrowded lakes and inexperienced boaters.
Since HEY WAVE released the original Water Sport Wristflag in early 2022, they have received valuable feedback and new product requests from the water sport community. As a result, HEY WAVE has recently expanded its line of high visibility products designed to place safety in the hands of all water & paddle sport participants while helping to comply with safe boating regulations. These new products are now available through a local retailer near you! SEE ALL SAFETY PRODUCTS
KEY-LINK FLOAT FLAG
The HEY WAVE KEY-LINK FLOAT FLAG works with any existing kill-switch making the captain compliant with 46 USC 4312, a new wear law requiring connection to the ECOS (engine cut-off switch) on boats under 26 ft. The bright colored floating foam spool ensures boaters will not lose keys, and the HEY WAVE distress flag (2”x19”) may be quickly deployed in emergency situations.
HEY WAVE PADDLE FLAG
The HEY WAVE PADDLE FLAG transforms your paddle into a waveable distress flag (2”x19”) that floats your paddle and creates visibility, without sacrificing performance. Deploy flag in distress situations by releasing the neoprene tab to alert others of your location.
READY RIDER SAFETY PACK
The Ready Rider Safety Pack is essential on every boat for water sport safety! This bundle includes 3 HEY WAVE Wristflags, 2 HEY WAVE Visibility Bands, & 1 HEY WAVE Boat Flag, all in a HEY WAVE Storage bag.
HEY WAVE applications beyond the boat
Water Sport Rentals
HEY WAVE visibility bands provide a measure of added safety for Water Sport Rentals of paddle boards, boogie boards, kayaks, sail boards, and waverunners. Private label HEY WAVEs are available for rental facilities.
Beaches
A day at the beach shouldn’t be filled with anxiety. Beach goers can be easily distracted too! Rest assured, parents will easily spot their HEY WAVE kids playing in the sand or splashing in the waves.
Waterparks and Wave Pools
Safety benefits continue even in more controlled waters. Waterpark and wave pool life
guards are quickly able to see any HEY WAVE alert flags deployed by struggling swimmers.
HEY WAVE Background
New laws are in place nationwide to create safety and awareness among recreational boaters and water sport participants. Skier Flags are mandatory on boats in many states pulling skiers, wakeboarders, and tubers. These flags remain with the boat and not with those in the water. HEY WAVE is a visibility device worn by the participant in the water and it remains with them while down until their boat safely returns. It was initially developed to give concerned parents peace of mind knowing their kids have some sort of additional safety through increased visibility.
Hand Signals are a part of Boater Safety Classes. These signals are not always visible or easy for younger riders to convey. HEY WAVE flags provide additional options for signaling to all boaters, especially “I’M OK” or, more importantly, “SEE ME!”
About the Inventors
The Ringenbach family teamed up to develop the HEY WAVE
product idea and design concept during Covid lockdowns. It was
truly a family effort.
Jamie is an entrepreneur with a University of Illinois engineering degree and Northwestern Kellogg MBA. He invented the Flexstorm Inlet Filter in 2008 and grew it from a basement build to over $45 million in total sales, now under the ownership of Advanced Drainage Systems (WMS). He left his position with ADS in 2021 and partnered with his wife, Sheila, forming HeyWay Unlimited LLC.
Sheila is a lifelong water sport enthusiast who was raised skiing on Midwest lakes. She developed the idea of an alert flag for the rider after several close calls with the kids bouncing off tubes in busy lakes. They were at the mercy of oncoming boat traffic without a ski to hold up in the air – there had to be a better solution than a skier down flag on the boat.
Calvin, Thomas, and Mason are all creative minds constantly
developing new ideas for the next big thing. It was Mason who suggested the wrist wrap flag concept. Calvin and Thomas developed the logo and graphics with a sense of style and flair that would appeal to our target market.
Together it’s their mission to grow HEY WAVE into a household name while establishing new industry standards that help
protect water sport participants.