Safety shield for use with the winch wheel of a boat lift

1 . A safety shield for use with a hand operated winch wheel of a boat lift, the wheel having a rim connected by spokes to a hub, the wheel having multiple openings defined between the spokes and the rim, the safety shield comprising:

at least one sheet of material having a perimeter shaped to conform to a perimeter of one of the openings defined between the spokes and the rim, the sheet of material including a plurality of connection points for attaching the perimeter to the spokes and the rim defining the one of the openings.

2 . The safety shield of claim 1 wherein each of the connection points comprises a grommet.

3 . The safety shield of claim 1 wherein the at least one sheet of material comprises a polyethylene panel.

4 . The safety shield of claim 1 further comprising a plurality of connectors adapted to extend from the connection points to the spokes and rim defining the one of the openings.

5 . The safety shield of claim 4 wherein each of the connection points comprises a grommet and each of the connectors comprises a cable tie.

6 . The safety shield of claim 1 wherein the at least one sheet of material is perforated.

7 . The safety shield of claim 1 wherein the at least one sheet of material comprises a plurality of perforations that define a logo.

8 . The safety shield of claim 1 wherein the at least one sheet of material has a decorative design on a face of the sheet of material.

9 . A safety shield for use with a hand operated winch wheel of a boat lift, the wheel having a rim connected by spokes to a hub, the wheel having multiple openings defined between the spokes and the rim, the safety shield comprising:

a plurality of sheets of material, each sheet having a perimeter shaped to conform to a perimeter of one of the openings defined between the spokes and the rim, each sheet including a plurality of connection points for attaching the perimeter to the spokes and the rim defining the one of the openings.

10 . The safety shield of claim 9 wherein each of the connection points comprises a grommet.

11 . The safety shield of claim 9 wherein each sheet of material comprises a polyethylene panel.

12 . The safety shield of claim 9 further comprising a plurality of connectors adapted to extend from the connection points to the spokes and rim defining the one of the openings.

13 . The safety shield of claim 12 wherein each of the connection points comprises a grommet and each of the connectors comprises a cable tie.

14 . The safety shield of claim 9 wherein at least one of the sheets is perforated.

15 . The safety shield of claim 9 wherein at least one sheet of the sheets comprises a plurality of perforations that define a logo.

16 . The safety shield of claim 9 wherein at least one of the sheets has a decorative design on a face of the sheet.

17 . A safety shield for use with a hand operated winch wheel of a boat lift, the wheel having a rim connected by spokes to a hub, the wheel having multiple openings defined between the spokes and the rim, the safety shield comprising:

at least one sheet of material having a perimeter shaped to conform to a perimeter of one of the openings defined between the spokes and the rim; and

a plurality of connectors adapted to extend from the perimeter to the spokes and rim defining the one of the openings.

18 . The safety shield of claim 17 wherein the at least one sheet of material comprises a polyethylene panel.

19 . The safety shield of claim 17 wherein each of the connectors comprises a cable tie.

20 . The safety shield of claim 19 further comprising a plurality of grommets located adjacent the perimeter to receive the cable ties.