Nothing says Fun and Festive like colorful flags and streamers floating in the breeze, and they can often signal special places and events. And it seems that in the right form, the color and flutter can also provide a surprising and welcome service to lake, home, and cottage environments.
Dori Poles display eye-catching, wind-drifting nylon pennants from a tall pole that deter geese and other birds from landing and making a mess. The poles can telescope from 7’ to 19’ and have an exclusive swiveling “yoke” bracket, which means your colorful pennant will never get tangled in the wind.
Manufactured in Kalamazoo, Michigan where high winds across the Great Lakes are a regular element, these special pole-mounted pennants have become widely known as bird deterrents for docks and lake shores. As each nylon pennant dances, drifts, sways, flutters and floats, riding the wind in a carefree and casual manner, it creates shadows and movement 19’ above docks that birds would normally find attractive as landing spots. However, the pennant movements appear to scare-off the birds, perhaps indicating the presence of larger predator birds.
Company President Roger Lepley displayed several colorful Dori Poles on his dock near Newaygo, Michigan. His neighbors thought they were extraordinary and immediately wanted some. Several neighbors joined the trend and one neighbor mentioned that geese were no longer making their obnoxious mess on his dock. Lepley realized his dock was also staying mess-free and found his other neighbors were also touting the amazing bird deterrent effect of the Dori Poles.
Positive comments and enjoyable testimonials praising the Dori Poles have poured in. Lepley said, “Nearly all comments have been positive. And even if the rare customer disagrees on the effectiveness as a bird deterrent, they literally always want to keep the Dori Pole displayed as a beautiful and pleasing product. Some folks have ordered simply to show where they are on the lake or to show pride with certain school colors.
Since Michigan is a classic battle of the Maize and Blue against the Spartan Green and White at many lakes, the company has added more than 20 two-color “collegiate” pennants to the mix and can custom make others for those who want to display their school colors.
“The 14’ foot long, flowing pennants mounted on the 19-foot tall fiberglass poles are elegant, extremely colorful, and much more compelling than a flag or windsock,” Lepley said. “They are so smooth and balanced. It’s like watching a ballet. The motion is actually relaxing,” he said, “especially on a balmy summer day. They are reminiscent of the banners that flew at medieval gatherings, except there are no jousts! One neighbor observed that it was like sitting and watching the flames of a nightly beach fire, except that during the day we sit around and watch the Dori pennants.”
Dori Pole products have been around since 1984 when they were marketed to festivals and events. It wasn’t until 2007, when Lepley’s company purchased the product line from a California landscape architect that the bird deterrent feature noted above was discovered.
Since that discovery the company has added special dock mounting hardware, pontoon boat mounts and two other sizes of poles as well eight-foot-long pennant options, to the mix.
“We now have over 50 color choices for pennants in the two lengths and some special ones such as our best seller, a red, white and blue combination as well as a pirate theme, multicolor and checkerboard versions and a new Canada maple leaf design. The 19’ fiberglass poles telescope from 7’, for easy shipping and transport. A top “Swiveling Yoke” allows the pennants to turn easily with the wind to avoid tangling.
The company reports that Dori Poles are now colorfully and festively deterring birds across the US and Canada! Visit www.doripole.com for more information.
