You can definable pick-out surfers. Maybe not each one, but there's a certain style to someone who has a lot of surf influence.
I surfed for years (still do, of course) before discovering snowboarding. Then a few years later I learned I could make more surfy turns on a different set-up. Haven't ridden the softboots much, since.
It seems if you ride powder, you can get really close to mimicking the feeling of surfing whilst on softboots. Unfortunately here in the mid-west, that's not an option. So I've found that steep carves and hardbooting provides the necessary fix when the Lake Superior is flat or frozen (usually one of the two).
As for style differences, whomever I'm skiing comments on how I have a different flow (not saying it's a good one!), even when compared to those on similar equipment. I tend to stay a bit farther back in the seat than a guy should, with maybe a little more Lopez/Thompson flare to the turns, and I can't help but hit the fall line and tuck under some overhanging branches.
Brian
www.superiorsurfclub.com