‘Dropping in’ on a Snurfer

By Stewart A. McFerran

Snowboarding has become a worldwide phenomenon. The big air tricks of mega stars, such as Shaun White in the Olympic Half Pipe, rival the traditional Nordic pursuit of Alpine skiing. You may be surprised to know it all began in the dunes of West Michigan, where my friends and I pursued the sport of snurfing, a.k.a. snow surfing. 

The tricks we did on our Snurfer boards were tame, even quaint, by the standard of today’s snowboard tricks. I could only dream of a “Backside 540” when “dropping in” off a wintry West Michigan dune. And, yet, the essence of the sport was there, and our passion for snurfing rivaled or exceeded the passion of today’s snowboarders.

My friend Reed Minty, son of Edgar and poet Judith, made a 16-millimeter film entitled, “Make Mine Snurf”. The film may have been lost since it was shot in 1978. It recorded the passion of the Snurfer boys of North Muskegon High School.

The Snurfer was invented by a man with ties to the Brunswick Corporation. Brunswick produced bowling equipment and flooring at its headquarters in Muskegon, Mich. Sherman “Sherm” Poppen created the Snurfer, a shorter and wider version of a ski, and talked his kids into trying his invention on the “Sugar Bowl” at the Muskegon State Park. Friends of friends joined in and rode the deep powder on Snurfer boards all the way to the bottom, in a style and stance that would later become snowboarding. After obtaining a patent, Poppen licensed Brunswick to make the Snurfers.

This all happened in the late sixties and seventies when, after a long afternoon of snurfing, I recall my “bell bottoms,” frozen and encrusted with snow, ringing out as they brushed together during a trick performed from the edge of a steep dune. Lake Michigan loomed large as the lake-effect powder snow piled up to cushion my falls off the Snurfer.

I stood on my Snurfer with my left foot forward. My boots gripped the board, and my left hand held the rope that came from the bow. In this way, I stayed on the board as I “dropped in” from the edge of the dunes. Some rode in an opposite posture, with the right foot forward and the right hand holding the rope, in the stance known as “goofy” in today’s snowboard parlance.

Snurfers had no metal edges and could not carve turns on the hard-packed snow of ski resorts. The six-inch-wide boards were best suited for the deep powder snow that blanketed our beloved Lake Michigan dunes. 

In fact, I recall getting kicked out of ski resorts for attempting to snurf down hills served by ski lifts. The stated reason was that the board was not attached to the body. If the rider let go of the rope, the board could come loose and careen down the hill, possibly injuring someone at the bottom. The ski resorts were only for skiers in those days. 

The essence of the sport of snurfing was found in the deep woods and dunes that we climbed with our boards in tow. It took place far from the crowds at the ski lifts, the snowmakers and bright lights. Instead, there were crowds of friends on the open faces of the Muskegon State Park dunes, family station wagons dropping off all the kids. 

While the rope is gone and sharp metal edges have been added — along with bindings that secure the rider’s boots to the board ⸺ snowboarding owes its origins to Poppen. (The Muskegon inventor died at 89 in 2019.)

The National Snow Surfing (snurfing) Competition was held at Muskegon State Park. Ted Slater won in 1968; John Asmussen competed in 1979. I attended the latter championship at the dunes behind the “Block House” and observed that the powder snow had become packed and the narrow run through the trees was lined with people. I also observed the beginning of the commercialization of the sport.

At the ’79 championship, a guy from Vermont showed up in Muskegon with a modified Snurfer. It had a binding that secured the rider’s boots to the board. I recall him arguing with the race officials. He claimed that he should be allowed to compete, even though he had made modifications to his Snurfer.  

Jake Burton Carpenter would be disqualified from competing with this new type of Snurfer. He returned to Vermont to found Burton Snowboards.

John Asmussen recalled practicing for the race in Muskegon with Carpenter.

“I placed second in the National Championships in 1977 & 1979,” he said. “I snurfed with Jake Burton Carpenter when he came to Muskegon, about a week before the championship, to practice behind the Blockhouse where the championship was held. The snow on the run was so chopped up, very few people made two of the three runs from top to bottom without falling.”

According to Asmussen, Carpenter couldn’t compete with others but was allowed to race in a special category made “just for him.”

“…he won his category as the only contestant, though his time was significantly slower than the three winning times (on the Snurfer hill).”

To all you Gen Xers and Millennials who enjoy snowboarding: you have the Baby Boomer snurfers who “dropped in” off the edge of Lake Michigan sand dunes to thank for the invention of snowboarding. 

I would just like to say, “You’re welcome.” 

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Snurfer Girl Wendy Poppen

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Snowboard Rental and Lessons at Crystal and Caberfae

Compiled by Stewart A. McFerran

Crystal Mountain, Thompsonville

Burton snowboards can be rented here. Crystal’s Snow Sports School offers snowboarding lessons at the terrain park on the Mountain. The Burton boards have “twin tips.” The bindings on the boards can be switched for those who ride goofy. Advanced riders can be seen performing “Double McTwist” (a.k.a. “Tomahawk”) and “Frontside Double Corks.” Call (877) 326-8030.

Caberfae Peaks, Cadillac

Rent Head and Rossignol snowboards here. A terrain park replaced the half pipe and is available for those who want to perfect their snowboard tricks, such as a “Sky Hook Frontside 1440” or a “Cab Double Cork 1020.” Lessons are available. Call (231) 862-3000. 

Just how popular is snowboarding, anyway? 

“So, we did 1,677 snowboard lessons last year, compared to 5,651 ski lessons,” said “Sammie” of Crystal’s Snow Sports School. “Snowboarding is growing over time; we’ve seen an increase in snowboarders, but we still see more skiers here.” 

Snowboarders are still challenging the status quo and breaking the rules in ways our proto Snurfer minds could never imagine.