| How a piece of wood changed world history. | | | | to his boards thus allowing him to control them much |
| Many times someone doing something a little different | | | | better. |
| and having his or her ideas catch on has changed | | | | During this time Burton had on major competitor, Tom |
| history. The pasteurizing of milk to prevent spoiling and | | | | Sims. Sims borrowed from skateboarding technology |
| contamination is a perfect example. Snowboarding | | | | to create his own version of the snowboard. Sims |
| was also the result of someone doing something a little | | | | snowboards came from an idea he had in shop class |
| different. In a few short years we have taken a crazy | | | | when to glued carpet to the top of a piece of wood |
| idea and turned it into a household word and created a | | | | and aluminum sheeting to the bottom of the board. |
| culture and language around it. Snowboarding has | | | | In order to showcase their innovations, Burton and |
| become an Olympic event and has even forced us to | | | | Sims held the first ever snowboarding competition in |
| ask ourselves questions about our society when we | | | | Vermont in 1982. This competition was more of a |
| use the phrase Smoke a fatty for Rebagliati. | | | | survival contest as the runs where icy kamikaze runs. |
| The history of snowboarding officially begins in 1929 | | | | This event helped to launch the magazine Absolutely |
| with a man named M.J. Burchett. For some unknown | | | | Radical that became the International Snowboarding |
| reason, perhaps a dare from friends or the result of | | | | Magazine. |
| drinking, Mr. Burchett changed history when he cut a | | | | Snowboarding technology continued to improve, as did |
| plank of plywood and secured it to his feet using a | | | | the fame of its competitions. The competitions |
| clothesline and horse reins. This humble beginning | | | | became so popular that the International Snowboarding |
| changed history forever. | | | | Federation was formed to help judge competitions. In |
| Not much changed for snowboarders until 1965 when | | | | 1998 snowboarding made its grand entrance into the |
| Sherman Poppen invented a toy for his daughter and | | | | world of the Olympics at Nagano, Japan. |
| eventually marketed it. His Snurfer consisted of | | | | This too was a controversial time. The IOC dismissed |
| 2-ski bound together with a rope at the nose of the | | | | the ISF and instead had the Federation Internationale |
| skis to hold on to. This idea caught on fast and Mr. | | | | de Ski over see the events. While this policy is still in |
| Poppen sold half a million of his Snurfers by 1966. Mr. | | | | effect to this day, tensions are easing between the |
| Poppen helped create demand for his product by | | | | two factions and things are running much smoother. |
| holding contests for Snurfers. Jake Burton took part in | | | | Of course no history of snowboarding would be |
| many of these competitions until he broke his | | | | complete with out mentioning Rebagliati in the 1998 |
| collarbone in a car accident. | | | | Olympics. Rebagliati, a Canadian from Whistler BC, |
| Snowboards as we know them came into existence | | | | won the gold medal that year but later tested positive |
| in 1969 when riding down snowy hills on a cafeteria | | | | for trace amounts of marijuana and was stripped of |
| plate in college inspired Dimitrije Milovich. Mr. Milovich | | | | his gold medal. Rebagliati appealed the ruling and won |
| decided to make snowboards that where based upon | | | | since marijuana is a controlled substance, not a banned |
| the design of a surfboard but worked the same way | | | | substance and is not a performance-enhancing drug. |
| skis did. In 1972 Mr. Milovich started a company called | | | | This event helped to decriminalize marijuana in Canada |
| Winterstick and really fired up the idea of | | | | and caused many people to rethink their position on |
| snowboarding until 1980 when he left the industry. To | | | | marijuana. "Smoke a fatty for Rebagliati" was a |
| this day Milovich is seen as a very important pioneer in | | | | common phrase to show support for Rebagliati and |
| the industry. | | | | show support for the reforming of the Canadian laws. |
| In 1977 Burton came back to his first love, the Snurfer. | | | | Snowboarding has come a long way in 70 odd years. |
| After completing university, Burton moved to Vermont | | | | Snowboarding started as a crazy idea that only fools |
| and needing to make some money, started to produce | | | | would try and has become an accepted Olympic |
| Snurfers again. Burton’s snowboards where | | | | event due to its popularity. Arguably, snowboarding is |
| made of laminated wood and he shocked the world | | | | the fastest growing sport and industry. Few other |
| when he won a Snurfer competition on his own board. | | | | innovations have caught on this fast or have become |
| One major reason for Burton being able to win the | | | | an Olympic sport so soon. |
| competition was the skiing styled binding that he added | | | | |