Powder surfing

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Powder surfing, also known as powsurfing and often spelled as one word e.g. "powdersurfing", is the act of surfing on snow free of any form of bindings and without the aid of ropes, hooks or bungee cords. Powdersurfing is performed on "powsurfer" which is a specially designed board engineered to be controlled using only the rider's feet and balance. This birth of style of riding was inspired by powder snowboarding, surfing and skateboarding. The lack of any bindings or bungee ropes along with the design of the boards allow riders to bring movements and tricks from surfing and skateboarding onto the snow. [1] Much like surfing, the only connection between the board and the rider is a leash to prevent runaway equipment should the rider fall. Powder surfing is closely related to snowskating in its fundamentals, style and required skill. Powder surfing was sometimes confused with Noboarding while in its infancy but the two are quite different both in fundamentals, equipment used, and the skill required to ride them. Noboarding is performed on a typical snowboard using a kit that includes a rubber pad and bungee cords that are anchored to the board and held in the hand of the rider to hold the board to the riders feet and make the board turn. Noboarding and the kit called the "noboard pad" was pioneered by Greg Todds. In contrast, powdersurfing and snowskating are performed completely binding free and hands free on specially crafted boards that are designed to be ridden without the aid of any ropes or binding. [2] [3]

The terms "powdersurfer" and "powdersurfing" were coined by Jeremy Jensen in 2007 to describe, name and market the bindingless boards that he was handcrafting specifically to be ridden without any forms of binding, bungee, rope or hooks. Jensen founded Grassroots Powdersurfing, the first company specializing in the creation of powdersurfers and the act of riding powder completely hands free and binding free. [4] Following the advent of powdersurfing and snowskating the act of riding completely binding free and hands free has gained popularity and acceptance worldwide.



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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Snowboard</span> Winter sport equipment

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Snowboarding</span> Snow sport involving a single board

Snowboarding is a recreational and competitive activity that involves descending a snow-covered surface while standing on a snowboard that is almost always attached to a rider's feet. It features in the Winter Olympic Games and Winter Paralympic Games.

Boardsports are active outdoor sports that are played with some sort of board as the primary equipment. These sports take place on a variety of terrains, from paved flat-ground and snow-covered hills to water and air. Most boardsports are considered action sports or extreme sports, and thus often appeal to youth. Some board sports were marginalized in the past. However, many board sports are gaining mainstream recognition, and with this recognition, they have enjoyed wider broadcast, sponsorship and inclusion in institutional sporting events, including the Olympic Games.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Surfboard</span> Platform board used in the sport of surfing

A surfboard is a narrow plank used in surfing. Surfboards are relatively light, but are strong enough to support an individual standing on them while riding an ocean wave. They were invented in ancient Hawaii, where they were known as papa he'e nalu in the Hawaiian language, and were usually made of wood from local trees, such as koa. They were often over 460 cm (15 ft) in length and extremely heavy. Major advances over the years include the addition of one or more fins (skegs) on the bottom rear of the board to improve directional stability, and numerous improvements in materials and shape.

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Longboard (skateboard)</span> Type of sports equipment similar to skateboard

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Mountainboarding</span> Action sport

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Snowskate</span>

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Snurfer</span>

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Kite landboarding</span>

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Flatland skimboarding</span>

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Backcountry snowboarding</span>

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Skateboard</span> Wheeled wooden board used for skateboarding

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Freeboard (skateboard)</span>

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Jones Snowboards</span>

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References

  1. Wood, Robin. "Powdersurfers get their thrills with no bindings". Daily News-Miner. Retrieved 19 February 2015.
  2. Huffman, Jesse. "The Powsurf Chronicles take snowboarding back to bindingless roots". ESPN Xgames. Retrieved 1 January 2012.
  3. Jensen, Jeremy. "Powdersurfing FAQ". Grassroots Powdersurfing. Retrieved 1 November 2010.
  4. Jensen, Jeremy. "About Powdersurfing". Grassroots Powdersurfing. Retrieved 1 November 2010.