Is it possible to create a board as a template? It would be nice to create the board with a pre-defined set of lists and cards for a standard set of tasks.
No, this is not possible to do currently. But it might be possible through the API
It is not currently possible, but there is a (very highly voted) card for that feature.
Until that is implemented, you might consider using the Trello Clone Chrome Extension (written by a third party).