Flip the Script: Chocolate x Route One
2024 marks 30 years since the establishment of one of the finest skateboarding brands in the industry, Chocolate Skateboards. To celebrate this monumental anniversary and all of the shops, cities and communities who have been along for the ride, the brand has flipped the script, creating 90 special edition graphics in Andy Jenkins’ original Chocolate Script logo, to show love to those who have supported Chocolate since their beginning in 1994.
As part of the 30-year celebrations, Route One have got their hands on two exclusive Chocolate Script graphics, honouring two of the UK’s liveliest skate scenes, Bristol and London.
The focus of the London graphics takes inspiration from (probably) the most famous spot in the UK, Southbank. The heartbeat of the London skateboarding scene for decades, Southbank is famed for its 1960s concrete architecture; pillars, slabs, banks and ledges fill the space which has been skated by some of the best in the biz over the years.
The board features a concrete-coloured background with darker embossed details and marks reminiscent of London’s brutalist architecture. Sitting atop the textured concrete is the London Flip the Script logo, celebrating the rich skateboarding heritage of the city.
Next up, Bristol. Possibly the highest skateboarders per square mile anywhere in the country; a place where everyone and their nan seems to skate. The skate culture is as rich and vibrant as the art scene, so what better way to pay tribute to both with a board graphic inspired by those iconic colourful houses which overlook Bristol’ harbour?
From nose to tail, the deck is split into the vibrant pastel colours of the houses, with Bristol’s very own Script logo planted on top. This one’s so nice you won’t want to skate it.
So why the Script logo? Before Evan Hecox moved from designing snowboard graphics to skateboards and ultimately designed the iconic Chunk logo graphic, Girl Skateboards art director Andy Jenkins hand-drew Chocolate’s first logo, the now famous Chocolate script. What better way to celebrate 30 years of Chocolate than throwing it back to ’94 with the OG Script font celebrating all the places, stores and communities that made Chocolate’s journey possible?
What started as a way to fit all their friends on the overcrowded Girl team has grown into its own beast. Rick Howard and Mike Carroll have explained that Chocolate was originally created after a Girl tour van was so full that Chico Brenes was left behind, unable to fit in the van.
Since then, the Chocolate team has featured some of the industries most talented skaters, including Stevie Williams, Daniel Castillo, Keenan Milton and Brenes. Their current roster features a star-studded cast: Vincent Alvarez, Carl Aikens, Kenny Anderson, Jordan Trahan, Erik Herrera, Stevie Perez, James Capps, Jesus Fernandez, Raven Tershy, and Chris Roberts, famed for his switch flip manual from the groundbreaking 2004 “Hot Chocolate” video.
Hot Chocolate is perhaps the most iconic of all the Chocolate skate films, but Las Nueve Vidas De Paco and Pretty Sweet, a joint endeavour with their pals at Girl, definitely give it a run for its money.
Even after 30 years, Chocolate Skateboards remain one of the leading board brands, and we are stoked to be involved with their Flip the Script project to celebrate the anniversary and feel privileged to play a (very) small part in their journey and skateboarding heritage.
Available in our Bristol and London stores and online now.