The illustrated boot is from the year 1997. This was a design history study of the snowboard boot. Although this boot is from not too long ago, it is interesting to see where design has taken this "new sport (only begining to become popular circa 1977)" in just a few years, when comparing to a current, more developed boot. Although snowboard boots, in general, seem to be more geared toward firmer boots with more support, the older and softer design (depicted in this study) is still produced because it is still a preferred boot by many individuals.