Burton
One of the first companies that comes to mind when you mention Snowboarding is Burton. Often a sponsor of the winter X games, you can see their name plastered everywhere when you’re out on the slopes. Where do the roots of this company lie, though?
It all dates back to 1977, when Jake Burton started Burton Snowboards in Londonderry, VT. Four years later he moves the factory to his home in Manchester. As the popularity of snowboarding increased, Burton Snowboards grows. The European division opened in Austria in 1985. Previously, in 1984, Jake began production of the Burton outerwear line. By 1986, over 1000 stores in the US carry Burton Snowboards.
Burton continues to grow in popularity. They now have 6 different brands that belong to the Burton family, including RED (Rider Engineered Devices), Gravis Footwear, and Anon Optics. Burton is known for several technological advances in snowboarding equipment as well (From Wikipedia):
- Burton ICS
- Burton started utilizing a single channel binding mounting system on their 2006 Jeremy Jones pro model called the Infinite Channel System (ICS). The ICS system is claimed by Burton to be the most responsive binding setup possible when paired with the Burton EST binding. In 2007, the ICS system has found its way to the X8, Jeremy Jones, and the Un..Inc snowboard lines. Jeremy Jones has been the largest advocate of the ICS System, claiming it is responsive enough to be able to feel the snowbaord in ways that were unthinkable before.
How about a Burton Snowboard… these guys aren’t kidding around!