Origin of the Jeep Wave ???

[Scottimatic]

My first vehicle was an 88' YJ with no locks, no power steering, no a/c, and was a 5 speed manual.
I've had 3 other Wranglers and now a Gladiator which is my first automatic.

I always thought the wave was just a culture thing that we shared due to having to shift and the fact that we recognized each other for the fun and the pain of driving such a vehicle. Getting caught in the rain and trying to put up a top then having to pop the drain holes and drive home without doors. The pain of parallel parking without power steering.

Yet, I offer another theory on the origin of the wave. It may be the V for victory. As in victory over the Axis Forces of WWII. You've all seen many pictures of people in the East flashing the V for victory sign in photos. The Jeep Wave appeared sometime after WWII and the wide use of Jeeps throughout the US.

This is why I don't mind flashing the V for victory sign. Just don't ask me to get on board with Ducks. If I get another one I'm gonna hang them with tiny nooses from my hitch.

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[danimal2000]

I'm sure you've seen this one

 

[Gvsukids]

I'm sure you've seen this one

Lots more discussion.

https://www.jeepgladiatorforum.com/forum/threads/when-and-why-i-used-to-wave….64960/post-1066977

https://realtruck.com/blog/the-jeep-wave/

https://www.jeepgladiatorforum.com/forum/threads/do-we-wave.17910/post-273490

 

[Greg_L]

 

[JTGuy]

I had a '70 Bronco. Back then we would pull over and talk about our rigs. The biggest tire was a 29 inch Armstrong Norman. It was a different 4x4 world.

 

[Thunderspud]

Just don't ask me to get on board with Ducks. If I get another one I'm gonna hang them with tiny nooses from my hitch.

There are so many Wranglers and Gladiators around the areas I frequent (foothills of the Great Smoky Mountains in East Tennessee and Western NC) that the wave has become almost as meaningless as the ducks have. Rowing through my gears on mountain roads sort of loses some of its cachet when you are waving to every 4th vehicle you see, lol.

 

[Figmo]

I prefer the “Jedi Mind Wave”

Four fingers up and waving from low left, up and down to low right.

As if to impart, “this is not the Jeep you are looking for”

 

[Greg_L]

I still can't believe how uptight people are about ducks.

 

[Thunderspud]

I still can't believe how uptight people are about ducks.

Eh....wouldn't say I am uptight about it. More apathetic than anything else. I usually just chuck the ones I'm given in a box under my back seat. Then that box goes on whatever Jeep we park next to at the brewery, lol.

That said, I do increasingly find that the entire thing has moved past it's initial sentiment. I have met folks out in the wild who have bought ducks to populate their own dash. Almost like a "starter kit" for owning a Jeep or something. Then there are all the normal non-Jeep passenger cars around here that also have a dash full of ducks.....that seems odd.

 

[Dummy SALAPA]

I noticed my first wave way back in the late 80s I had my first Jeep a CJ7 with the rare automatic trans. I started to notice folks in other Jeeps waving to me so I of course waved back. Yeah I dont know about the duck thing. Not my bag but im not against it. I saved my first duck but the rest will go on other jeeps if I get them. I dont mind playing the game but Im not one to litter my dashboard with them. You know in a bad enough accident Drs would be pulling ducks out of every orifice. LOL

 

[Tim. Y.]

My first "vehicle" was a '79 Yamaha Special, 3 banger. Drove that thing rain or shine for 2 years in Seattle. For me the "Jeep Wave" is still just the motorcycle wave.

 

[Scottimatic]

Eh....wouldn't say I am uptight about it. More apathetic than anything else. I usually just chuck the ones I'm given in a box under my back seat. Then that box goes on whatever Jeep we park next to at the brewery, lol.

That said, I do increasingly find that the entire thing has moved past it's initial sentiment. I have met folks out in the wild who have bought ducks to populate their own dash. Almost like a "starter kit" for owning a Jeep or something. Then there are all the normal non-Jeep passenger cars around here that also have a dash full of ducks.....that seems odd.

The Rubber Duck to me is the Late Great Kris Kristofferson in the Movie Convoy. The Jeep Duck thing is just a COVID coping mechanism. Its as cringe as truck nutz to me

 

[Dummy SALAPA]

For me when Jeep started capitalizing on "Jeep Wave" I felt it was kind of disappointing and lame. They kind of took the wind out of it. It became a marketing ploy. It was like the scene in Wayne's world when they took his logo and song and made it corporate.. LOL. Its only a matter of time before Jeep starts marketing ducks. Mark my words... lol

 

[Bananaman]

Depending on where you're from, a two fingered wave has been common for ages. When I started driving in the late '70's in Texas, almost every car or truck I past on county roads gave me a wave.

 

[snowbear]

I give Broncos a one-finger wave.

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