Is it a snowboard or a surf board? No, it's a snurfboard!

There is no denying the similarities between surfing and snowboarding – and now a group of inventors have come up with a board that can both surf and snowboard. The “snurfboard” can be used to ride the waves as a surfboard and then ride the snow as a snowboard. The project – which was a joint venture between Signal Snowboards, Surf Prescriptions and Future Fins – wasn’t easy because the board needed to work perfectly on the ocean and in the snowy mountains. While similar style activities, each sport requires a different shape of board, water and snow carving potential and the ability to absorb shock in both environments. So, the team decided to build a snowboard inside a surfboard. First a surfboard was re-engineered with the aim of insetting a wooden snowboard along the entire length of the surfboard. This took some careful slicing with a knife, a bit of mathematics and a few churning stomachs, racing hearts and sweat. Then a centre fin was added. And after that, the whole snurfboard was coated in fibreglass. But the test was always going to be in the action. First up was top surfer Rob Machado, who was asked to put the snurfboard through its paces on the ocean waves. "I'm excited. I love the tail, already. It'll work, for sure," Rob said when he first took a look at the board. After waxing it up, the new board revealed its ability on the waves. "I like this real low rocker. It carves really good," said Rob. Then came the test on snow. This time it was pro snowboarder Curtis Ciszek’s turn. Curtis rode the board with the snowboarder stabilising centre fin in place so the board would respond well at high speeds. Curtis had a ball on the snurfboard. Take a look at the board in action on this YouTube video: A Fish Out of Water