SNOWBOARDING.
The history of snowboarding
can only be traced back as far as the 1960's,Sherman Poppen is often
credited with inventing the snowboard .
As the story goes,
Poppen fixed two skis together for his daughter to surf down the
hill outside their Michigan home. Combining the words snow and surf,
the new invention was called the Snurfer, and went into
production the following year. In the seventies an east coast surfer (Dimitrije
Milovich) had the idea of sliding down the slopes on a cafeteria
tray.
He started his snowboard company in the early seventies and by
the eighties snowboarding had became a popular enough to hold a
world cup event which was held in Zurd,Austria.
A snowboard is ridden to descend snow-covered
slopes. It is thought to be a winter form of
surfing or skateboarding, except that the rider's feet are bound to
the board with bindings. Snowboards are constructed of a wood core
and laminated with fiberglass. The nose of the board is upturned, to
help the board glide over uneven snow. The tail of the board may be
more or less upturned to enable backwards riding.
The Bottom of the board
or the base is covered with a plastic called p-tex, which is usually
sintered to help it absorb wax, waxing the base helps the board
slide faster. The edges of the base are fitted with a steel edge,
which helps the board grab the snow when tipped up on edge.
Most boards have graphic
design's imprinted on the tops by board makers to attract riders to
their boards. Many riders spend many hours customizing the look of
their boards. The base of the board may also feature graphics, these
are often designed to make the manufacturer recognizable in photos.
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