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If you have spent any time in an RV campground, you have seen them.

The flags flying off the back of rigs — state flags, sports teams, military branches, funny ones that describe the family inside better than any welcome mat ever could. Flags are how RVers mark their camp, find their people, and say something about who they are without saying a word.

But getting a flag up on an RV?

That has historically been an adventure of its own.



Paint poles. Bungee cord. Zip ties. A whole lot of hope and an even greater amount of ladder climbing. For a long time, that was just how it was done — until one engineer had an epiphany at a campsite in 1998, and the RV world got a whole lot better for it.

It Started With Beer, a Campfire, and a Problem Worth Solving

In 1998, during a weekend camp outing and after a few beers, Dave, the founder of Flagpole Buddy had an epiphany. The first person to arrive at camp would put up a flag so the rest of the group could find the site — but doing it was a complete pain. Paint poles, bungee cord, and zip ties were the tools of the moment, and there was no good way to hold a flagpole in two places far apart without climbing the ladder.

Climbing the RV ladder is hazardous at any time — try it while holding a 22-foot pole with the wind picking up.

The solution came from an unlikely source. When Dave was a kid, he remembered that his GI Joe doll could hold guns and equipment without closing his fists. He realized he could form a complete circle from the vertical view while still grasping a pole without closing his hand — and from that, he made a few prototypes. The result was a system that let the group put up a flagpole so their RV friends could find camp.

Simple. Sturdy. Safe.

And it was the kind of idea that, once you see it, makes you wonder how no one built it sooner.

From the Garage to Camping World

Flagpole Buddy was formally founded in 2004  &  for years it was a small operation run by RVers for RVers, which is exactly the kind of grassroots brand that this community tends to produce and this community tends to love.

The turning point came at the Hershey RV Show — the same show, incidentally, where our own team at Learn to RV has crossed paths with some of the best people in this industry.

Christine was demonstrating the Flagpole Buddy at the Hershey show when a man in plain clothes came by, watched the demonstration, and said "I want this in my stores." He didn't have a business card, so he wrote his contact information on a blank receipt.

Christine called Dave and told him the story. Lots of people had said they could do great things with the product before. But when he looked the man up online, he was actually the CEO of Camping World: Marcus Lemonis.

The product was sent to the Camping World buyer, who initially said they weren't taking on new products and to try again next year. You need to watch the podcast episode to find out what happened next!

That is the kind of story that does not happen by accident. It happens when a product is genuinely good and the people behind it are genuinely persistent.

In 2013 Flagpole Buddy moved out of the garage. In 2015 the founder left his corporate career entirely to work Flagpole Buddy full-time with Christine. Two people, one great idea, and two decades of showing up for the RV community.

The Engineering Behind "Don't Climb the Ladder Again"

The key to the Flagpole Buddy system is the patented pivoting "twist" holder that mounts near the top of the ladder. This mount allows the pole to be installed from ground level and provides a sturdy support. The lower cup mount secures the bottom of the pole. Because the pole isn't clamped to the ladder, it is free to rotate with the wind.

Once the mounts are installed on the ladder, they stay there. You never have to climb again. The pole goes up from ground level — and it comes down the same way. For anyone who has ever wrestled with a flagpole on top of a rig in a crosswind, that is not a small thing.

The system holds two US patents and has been tested in desert winds, beach conditions, and every kind of weather the RV lifestyle throws at a campsite.

We have a Flagpole Buddy mount for our Starlink — actually, we have several different ways to mount it. Our suction‑cup setup is usually our go‑to, but we even have an adapter that lets us mount it off the front of our 5th‑wheel hitch.

When I say Dave at Flagpole Buddy has thought of everything to make mounting a flagpole or Starlink on your RV simple, secure, & stress‑free, I mean it. If you want an easy, reliable way to lift your Starlink above the roofline (or just make your campsite easier to spot), this is absolutely the place to learn more.

The Product Lineup — More Than Just Flags

What started as a flagpole mounting system has grown into something much more useful for the modern RVer. Flagpole Buddy now covers the full range of what you might want to get up in the air — safely, from the ground.

Flagpole Kits — 16 ft and 22 ft The original. The 22-foot RV flag pole system adjusts to fit most RV ladders, mounts to any flat surface, accommodates flags up to 3'x5', can fly multiple flags, and features a collapsible pole for easy storage. Available in multiple sizes to fit different ladder diameters.

Ladder Mount 2.0 An updated version of the original mount system with universal compatibility and adapters for different ladder diameters. US-patented and made domestically, the 2.0 version uses an innovative design that allows the pole to lock securely into the mount while remaining stable in various weather conditions.

Starlink Gen 2 Mount Kit For the growing number of RVers running Starlink for their mobile internet. In 2021, Flagpole Buddy began designing mounts specifically for Starlink units. The Starlink Mount Kit includes a 2.0 FlagPole Buddy Pole Mount Set, two 4-foot pole sections with locking buttons, and a Starlink mount adapter — designed to allow a single person to extend a Starlink dish above the rig while remaining on the ground.

Starlink Gen 3 Mount Kit The Gen 3 kit gets your Starlink dish over 13 feet in the air using a modular system with a 2-inch diameter aluminum sectional pole that won't collapse, won't lock up, and allows the user to create a custom height. The kit comes in 4-foot sections for storage and uses lightweight aluminum poles, fiberglass-filled nylon, and stainless steel hardware that won't rust.

Starlink Mini Mount Kit The same two-mount holding system and modular sectional pole design as the Gen 3 kit, adapted for the Starlink Mini dish. The patented two-mount holding system distributes wind loading stress throughout all ladder supports, keeping the user safely on the ground during installation.

Suction Cup Mounts For rigs or situations where the ladder mount is not the right fit — a versatile option for different mounting surfaces.

Solar Laser Mounts and Lights Because your campsite setup does not stop at the flag. Flagpole Buddy has expanded into lighting and solar solutions for RVers who want their site to look as good after dark as it does during the day.

All products are available directly at flagpolebuddy.com, through Camping World, and on Amazon.

RVers for RVers

Dave earned an engineering degree from Purdue, spent years working in aerospace with Hughes Aircraft, then 20 years making aircraft turbines, and another 10 in ground turbines, before retiring at 55 to work full-time with Christine at Flagpole Buddy.

Why does the background matter?

This is not a product designed by a committee trying to break into the RV market. This is a product designed by an engineer who was also an RVer who had the same problem everyone else had & who was too experienced to accept that bungee cord and zip ties were the best solution available.

Flagpole Buddy is a small company run by RVers & it shows in every interaction the community has had with them, from the RV shows where Christine has been demonstrating products for years, to the customer service reputation that has made the brand a consistent recommendation across RV forums and communities.

Hear the Full Story on Beyond the Brand

This Wednesday, April 8th, Flagpole Buddy is our featured brand on the Beyond the Brand podcast series on Learn to RV The Podcast. We go deeper on the origin story, the Camping World moment, where the product line is headed, and what it actually means to build something the RV community genuinely uses and trusts.

Find it wherever you listen to podcasts or head over to learntorvthepodcast.com.  Want a deeper dive? Looks like Flagpole Buddy may have even had their very own podcast! Check it out here!

And if you want to check out the full Flagpole Buddy product lineup before you listen, head to flagpolebuddy.com.

Whether you are flying your flag from a campsite or getting your Starlink dish above the roofline without climbing a ladder in a desert crosswind, they have a solution just for you.

Don't climb the ladder again.

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