A forerunner of the snowboard, the snurfer was created on Christmas Day 1965 when Michigan (USA) resident Shermann Poppin bound two children’s skis together to make a single board for his daughters. Dubbed the “snurfer” by his wife, the invention proved so popular that after taking out a patent in 1966, Poppin licensed it to the Brunswick Corporation.

Originally marketed as a novelty item, upwards of a million were sold over the next decade, making them the best-selling invention of the 1960s. Unfortunately, because they lacked bindings, snurfers couldn’t be taken on chairlifts. This led to further experimentation in 1970s and in 1977 keen snurfer Jake Burton Carpenter produced his first snowboard. He won the first competition in 1979 using a board of his own design. Burton Snowboards finally became available in Australia in 1986.

This original snurfer is on display at the Thredbo Ski Museum.