Chris Cole (born March 10, 1982) is an American professional
skateboarder
Skateboarding is an action sport originating in the United States that involves riding and performing tricks using a skateboard, as well as a recreational activity, an art form, an entertainment industry job, and a method of transportation. S ...
. As of September 2020, his sponsors are
Fallen Footwear
Fallen Footwear is an American skateboarding footwear and apparel brand founded by professional skateboarder Jamie Thomas in 2003, after leaving Circa. The company which was out of the market for almost two years (2016-2017) has now been acquir ...
,
Monster Energy
Monster Energy is an energy drink that was created by Hansen Natural Company (now Monster Beverage Corporation) in April 2002. As of March 2019, Monster Energy had a 35% share of the energy drink market, the second highest share after Red Bull ...
, Bones Bearings, Cult Crew, Thunder Trucks, Spitfire Wheels, Stance,
Kershaw Knives
Kershaw Knives designs, sources and manufactures a wide range of knives, including pocketknives, sporting knives, and kitchen cutlery. Kershaw is a brand of Kai USA Ltd., a member of the KAI Group, headquartered in Tualatin, Oregon, United Stat ...
, Grizzly Griptape,
GoPro
GoPro, Inc. (marketed as GoPro and sometimes stylized as GoPRO) is an American technology company founded in 2002 by Nick Woodman. It manufactures action cameras and develops its own mobile apps and video-editing software. Founded as Woodman La ...
,
Indian Motorcycles
Indian Motorcycle (or ''Indian'') is an American brand of motorcycles owned and produced by American automotive manufacturer Polaris Inc.[Zero Skateboards
Zero Skateboards is a skateboard company located in Carlsbad, California, United States. The brand was founded by professional skateboarder and entrepreneur Jamie Thomas, and distributed by his Black Box Distribution company. In late June 2014 ...]
.
Early life
Cole was born in
Statesville, North Carolina
Statesville is a city in and the county seat of Iredell County, North Carolina, United States, and it is part of the Charlotte metropolitan area. Statesville was established in 1789 by an act of the North Carolina Legislature. The population was r ...
but moved to the Philadelphia area at a young age. He grew up in
Langhorne, Pennsylvania
Langhorne Borough is a borough in Bucks County, Pennsylvania. The population was 1,622 at the time of the 2010 census.
The mailing address "Langhorne" is used for Langhorne Borough, but it is also used broadly to describe the majority of surro ...
.
[chriscobracole.com/biography]
Career
Cole gained attention following the completion of a number of difficult tricks: 360 flip, Switch Frontside flip and Backside 360 ollie down the staircase at Wallenberg High School in San Francisco, California. Backside
360 Kickflip
The 360 Kickflip, 360 Flip, Tre Flip or 3 Flip is a skateboarding trick invented by Rodney Mullen. This trick is a combination of a 360 pop shove-it and a kickflip
The kickflip is a skateboarding trick, in which the rider flips their skateboar ...
down the
Carlsbad gap
Carlsbad High School is a public high school in Carlsbad, California. First opened in 1957, the high school underwent major redevelopment from 2009 to 2012. The school is renowned for its high level of academic success and graduation levels, with ...
in
Carlsbad, California
Carlsbad is a coastal city in the North County region of San Diego County, California, United States. The city is south of downtown Los Angeles and north of downtown San Diego. As of the 2020 census, the population of the city was 114,746. ...
&
Martin Place
Martin Place is a pedestrian mall in the Sydney central business district, New South Wales, Australia. Martin Place has been described as the "civic heart" of Sydney. Amphitheatre in Sydney, Australia. But most notable a Backside flip, Switch Frontside flip and a Backside 360 ollie down the "Love Park" fountain in Philadelphia as seen in his Transworld In Bloom, and Fallen Ride the Sky Video Parts.
![Chris-Cole-handtekeningen-skateshop-DSC 0006](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/b/bd/Chris-Cole-handtekeningen-skateshop-DSC_0006.jpg)
Cole was formerly a member of the G-Spot Skate and Snow team, before being sponsored by
Enjoi
Enjoi is a skateboarding company that produces skateboard decks as the brand's primary product; the company also manufactures skateboarding accessories and clothing. The company, distributed by Dwindle Distribution, has, since inception, been kno ...
and
Zero Skateboards
Zero Skateboards is a skateboard company located in Carlsbad, California, United States. The brand was founded by professional skateboarder and entrepreneur Jamie Thomas, and distributed by his Black Box Distribution company. In late June 2014 ...
. Reflecting on the early stage of his career, Cole stated in a 2009 ''Thrasher'' interview:
I really like Enjoi. The brand is a breath of fresh air. I was on the East and detached from any team member so I was kind of a guy who rode the products, but not on the team. Especially 'cause they are a group of friends. I hung out with Marc Johnson a couple times. He was totally cool. I have always been a huge fan of his, so that was great.
Cole's other past sponsors include
World Industries
World Industries is a skateboarding company that offers skateboarding products, accessories and clothing. The company was founded by Steve Rocco in 1987. In 1988, Rocco was joined by skater, Rodney Mullen, and then Mike Vallely in 1989. As of ...
,
Axion Footwear
An axion () is a hypothetical elementary particle postulated by the Peccei–Quinn theory in 1977 to resolve the strong CP problem in quantum chromodynamics (QCD). If axions exist and have low mass within a specific range, they are of interes ...
,
Tensor Trucks
Tensor Trucks is a skateboarding truck company founded and designed by professional skateboarder, Rodney Mullen, in 2000. Tensor's parent company is Dwindle Distribution. The company offers trucks in three different heights (lo, mid, hi) that a ...
,
Ezekiel clothing
Ezekiel (; he, יְחֶזְקֵאל ''Yəḥezqēʾl'' ; in the Septuagint written in grc-koi, Ἰεζεκιήλ ) is the central protagonist of the Book of Ezekiel in the Hebrew Bible.
In Judaism, Christianity, and Islam, Ezekiel is ackn ...
,
Speed Demon Bearings
In everyday use and in kinematics, the speed (commonly referred to as ''v'') of an object is the magnitude of the change of its position over time or the magnitude of the change of its position per unit of time; it is thus a scalar quantit ...
,
Enjoi
Enjoi is a skateboarding company that produces skateboard decks as the brand's primary product; the company also manufactures skateboarding accessories and clothing. The company, distributed by Dwindle Distribution, has, since inception, been kno ...
,
Circa Footwear
C1RCA is also known as circa. It is a skateboard footwear & apparel company that started in 1999 & is based in San Clemente, California. The brand was started by Chad Muska & Jamie Thomas
Jamie Thomas (born October 11, 1974) is an Americ ...
,
eS Footwear,
Omit Apparel, but the most significant were
Zero Skateboards
Zero Skateboards is a skateboard company located in Carlsbad, California, United States. The brand was founded by professional skateboarder and entrepreneur Jamie Thomas, and distributed by his Black Box Distribution company. In late June 2014 ...
and
Fallen Footwear
Fallen Footwear is an American skateboarding footwear and apparel brand founded by professional skateboarder Jamie Thomas in 2003, after leaving Circa. The company which was out of the market for almost two years (2016-2017) has now been acquir ...
.
In May 2013, following a bet between Cole and professional skateboarder
Mike Mo Capaldi
Michael Capaldi (born March 27, 1990), popularly known as Mike Mo Capaldi, is a professional regular-footed skateboarder who gained popularity following his video part in ''Forecast'', a video produced by professional skateboarder Paul Rodriguez. ...
, Cole became a team rider for the Glassy brand—Capaldi and Cole, who are teammates on the DC Shoes team, agreed that Cole would join the Glassy team if he lost to Capaldi in any contest. The pair competed in the
Battle at the Berrics 6 contest on May 18, 2013 with Capaldi being the winner; however, as of July 9, 2014, an announcement had not been made regarding the new sponsorship arrangement and Cole does not appear on the brand's "Team" page.
A segment on
Tony Hawk
Anthony Frank Hawk (born May 12, 1968), nicknamed Birdman, is an American professional skateboarder, entrepreneur, and the owner of the skateboard company Birdhouse. A pioneer of modern vertical skateboarding, Hawk completed the first documen ...
's RIDE Channel, published on July 6, 2014, asked Cole—who was riding a blank, black-colored skateboard deck at the time—if he knew of any possibilities for his next skateboard deck sponsor and he indicated that he was not aware of any options at the time. On June 27, 2014, Cole posted an announcement of his departure from Zero on the social media platform
Instagram
Instagram is a photo and video sharing social networking service owned by American company Meta Platforms. The app allows users to upload media that can be edited with filters and organized by hashtags and geographical tagging. Posts can ...
, without a corresponding reason; however, a reply from the Zero Instagram account thanked Cole for his "loyalty & dedication."
Prior to the release of a limited edition series of 666 "Chris Cole" skateboard decks—Cole confirmed that the decks were not related to any brand, including a potential one of his own—that he officially parted ways with zero on July 1, 2014, which is displayed on the decks in
Roman numeral
Roman numerals are a numeral system that originated in ancient Rome and remained the usual way of writing numbers throughout Europe well into the Late Middle Ages. Numbers are written with combinations of letters from the Latin alphabet, eac ...
s.
Cole is perceived as an "ambassador" for skateboarding, representative of the generation that he is a member of, and he explained his perspective on the matter in an October 2014 interview:
When I started getting asked to talk about skateboarding in front of people, I found that my love for skateboarding wasn't the same as everybody else's. I have a skate rat mentality, much like the kids that are out there skating, and less like the older, more jaded people that get paid to do it. I love it so dearly, and I feel like the people that get paid to do it and represent it in the public eye, they should really love it too ... I also just wanna live a full life and it not to be all about just tricks at spots ... Who should represent this sport? Someone that dedicated their life to it and loves it.
In May 2015, Chris became a member of
Plan B Skateboards
Plan B Skateboards is a skateboarding company based in San Diego California, United States, founded by Mike Ternasky, Danny Way and Colin McKay. PlanB has been manufacturing and selling premium skateboard hard goods and apparel since 1991 .
Hist ...
.
In September 2020, Cole rejoined Zero Skateboards.
Company owner
Cole was a co-owner of Reign Skate Shop in Fairless Hills, PA, and a former shareholder of the Zero skateboard company. Cole parted ways with Zero on June 27, 2014, after three years as a shareholder and 13 years as a team rider. Cole explained:
I have had so many amazing years on ZERO. I can't explain to anyone how awesome these years have been. With a heavy heart, it is time for ZERO and I to part ways. My decision has absolutely nothing to do with the partnership with Dwindle. I believe that partnership will do great things. Hold tight to see what the future holds … Where we're going, we don't need roads …
In an October 2014 interview, Cole clarified that he was a "silent shareholder" with Zero, meaning that "any of the shares that I
olehad were contingent upon the actual sale of Zero. And that never happened and it's not gonna happen ... There was absolutely no payoff and I'm not a shareholder any longer."
Cole was the founder of skateboard clothing company Omit Apparel. Started in 2011 and based out of Irvine, California, Omit Apparel ceased to be an operational company in late 2012 and Cole's sponsorship deal with DC Apparel was announced in April 2013.
Cole is also an avid
BMX rider and co-owns Cult, a BMX company that
sponsors a team of riders. Team members include Chase Dehart, Dakota Roche, and Chase Hawk.
Awards and contest appearances
Cole was awarded
Thrasher Magazine
''Thrasher'' is a skateboarding magazine founded in January 1981 by Eric Swenson and Fausto Vitello. The publication consists primarily of skateboard- and music-related articles, photography, interviews and skatepark reviews.
The magazine also ...
's "Skater of the Year" accolade in both 2005 and 2009 (a feat achieved by only Cole and
Danny Way
Danny Way (born April 15, 1974) is an American professional skateboarder, company owner and rallycross driver who has been awarded ''Thrasher'' magazine's "Skater of the Year" award twice. He is known for extreme stunts, such as jumping into a ...
). He has also received the "Reader's Choice" award from ''
Transworld Skateboarding
''Transworld Skateboarding'' (''TWS'') was an Skate magazine, international magazine on skateboarding that was based in Carlsbad, California, United States. The publication also ran an accompanying website and video production company. In Februar ...
'' magazine.
Cole's team, Zero, won ''Thrasher Magazine''s "King of the Road" contest three times consecutively and he won the gold medal at the
X Games
The X Games are an annual extreme sports event organized, produced and broadcast by ESPN. Coverage is also shown on ESPN's sister network, ABC. The inaugural X Games were held during the summer of 1995 in Providence and Newport, Rhode Island, ...
on two consecutive occasions.
Cole has also been victorious in other contests, including Back to the Berg and the DC Copenhagen Pro.
In late June 2013, Cole won the gold medal at the Street League Skateboarding contest at the Munich leg of the X Games.
Cole came first place in the second round of Battle at the Berrics, the flatground competition run by
The Berrics
The Berrics is a private indoor skatepark owned by professional skateboarders Steve Berra and Eric Koston. It is also a website providing content filmed in the skatepark, as well other skateboard-related media. The facility's name is a portmante ...
.
Maloof Money Cup
Cole was victorious in the first three rounds of the
Maloof Money Cup
The Maloof Money Cup was an annual skateboarding competition for amateur and professional skateboarders founded by Joe and Gavin Maloof of the Maloof family. The events were held in four cities: Costa Mesa, California in 2008, 2009, 2010; New York ...
and, in the wake of his winning run, the event owners, the
Maloof brothers, offered US$1 million to the first person who wins four Maloof Money Cup titles. As of July 9, 2014, a further announcement on the offer had not been made.
Video games
Cole has appeared in the skateboarding video games ''
Skate
Skate or Skates may refer to: Fish
*Skate (fish), several genera of fish belonging to the family Rajidae
* Pygmy skates, several genera of fish belonging to the family Gurgesiellidae
* Smooth skates or leg skates, several genera of fish belongin ...
'', ''
Skate 2
''Skate 2'' is a skateboarding video game developed by EA Black Box and published by Electronic Arts. The game was released worldwide in January 2009 for PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360 after the spin-off title ''Skate It''. It is the sequel to 2007's ...
'', ''
Skate 3
''Skate 3'' is a skateboarding video game, the third installment in the ''Skate'' series and the sequel to 2009's '' Skate 2'', developed by EA Black Box and published by Electronic Arts. It was released worldwide in May 2010 for PlayStation 3 a ...
'', ''
Tony Hawk's Pro Skater HD
''Tony Hawk's Pro Skater HD'' is a skateboarding video game in the ''Tony Hawk's (series), Tony Hawk's'' series. Developed by Robomodo and published by Activision, ''Pro Skater HD'' is a high-definition remake of classic levels from ''Tony Hawk' ...
'', and ''
Tony Hawk's Pro Skater 5
''Tony Hawk's Pro Skater 5'' is a 2015 skateboarding video game developed in collaboration between Robomodo and Disruptive Games, and published by Activision. The tenth main installment in the ''Tony Hawk's'' series, the game is the first n ...
''.
Personal life
As of March 2016, Cole lives in
San Marcos, California
San Marcos ( ; Spanish for " St. Mark") is a city in the North County region of San Diego County, California. As of the 2020 census, the city's population was 94,833. It is the site of California State University San Marcos. The city is bordere ...
with his son and daughter.
References
External links
*
Reign Skate Shop official website*
*
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Cole, Chris
1982 births
Living people
People from Statesville, North Carolina
People from Langhorne, Pennsylvania
American skateboarders
X Games athletes