Review: 2027 Völkl Revolt 112 Skis

It’s funny that Völkl has a reputation for being the brand that creates stiff, burly, overbuilt, “traditional” skis when for a really long time, they were on the cutting edge of modern ski design. Back in the mid 2010s, designs like the Kuro, Gotama, Shiro, Sumo, and more were on the forefront of really cool big mountain, deep snow freeride skis. There was even a time when the brand went all-in on reverse camber designs, but thankfully that passed. Perhaps it was the popularity of the Mantra skis and their “aggressive dad-turn” vibe that brought about that reputation (perhaps rightfully so?), but Völkl is back in business with a fresh design that’s pretty out there. 

All the skis in the Revolt line are built with athlete-level performance in mind, but for the Völkl freeride team, that doesn’t always mean race-like aggression. In fact, most of the Revolt skis aren’t all that stiff (the 101 and 114 being the exception). The all-new Revolt 112 doesn’t necessarily “bridge the gap” between the 101 and 114 as much as bring an entirely new vibe to the line.

It’s a nearly symmetrical twin tip powder ski with hilarious amounts of both rocker and taper in the tip and tail, reminiscent of skis of the past like the Armada JJ or the original Atomic Bentchetlers. However, unlike those much softer-flexing skis, the burly Völkl construction means the Revolt 112 is stiff underfoot and quite heavy and damp, ready to surf its way through all kinds of weird snow.

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Völkl Revolt 112 Specs

• Size skied: 185 cm
• Lengths available: 178cm, 185cm, 192cm
• Sidecut: 134mm – 112mm – 126mm
• Radius: 19.1m (185cm)
• Profile: twin rocker, camber underfoot
• Weight: 2240g (185cm)

Shape, Flex and Construction

Völkl’s new Revolt 112 features one of the most unique-looking shapes of any ski on the market right now, taking the twin tip and tail rocker and taper to a whole new level. In short, these have extreme amounts of taper, with contact points closer to the binding as I’ve seen in years, paired with really high-rise tip and tail splay. Underfoot, there’s a 112mm waist, a small amount of camber and not much sidecut. However, thanks to the really short running length, the turn radius stays at a relatively short 19.1 meters in the 185cm ski. Völkl uses their 3D radius sidecut, meaning the radius gets longer at the tip and tail, but that almost seems irrelevant in this ski. The recommended mount point is damn near true center (-2.8cm from the actual line), which makes perfect sense given the nearly symmetrical shape and freestyle intentions.  

The flex of the Revolt 112 is an interesting one. Perhaps not surprisingly, the tips and tails are very soft, but underfoot it’s a tank. The aspen/maple wood core is a tried-and-true combo of a lighter, shorter-grained wood (aspen) with a heavy, damp one (maple) to achieve a very quiet ride. That turns the ski into a bit more of a bruiser/plow than a poppy, agile ski—perhaps that’s a nod to Völkl’s aforementioned reputation. Despite the stiff, quiet ride, there’s no metal in the ski.

On-Snow Performance

There are skis that are immediately intuitive to ride, and then there are skis that require a few runs (even a few days) to figure out. The Revolt 112 falls into the second category. But, that’s not necessarily a bad thing—it’s just been a really long time since I’ve ridden a ski like this. It’s hard to categorize this ski as purely a freestyle ski, but it definitely rewards a freestyler’s approach—skiing it from the center, ideally with a more upright boot, popping and jibbing around everywhere.

“Second run of the day off the headwall was deep! This is when I started to figure out the balance point of the ski. It wants to be skied in the center and would pair well with an upright freeride boot,” said one POWDER Week tester.

Where I found it worked best was in heavy, dense snow, particularly in tighter trees or playful steeps where maneuverability was paramount. It can ski fast, but it’s really more of a short, smeary turn kind of ski. Think: jumping off pillows, resort treeskiing, billygoating through technical cliffbands. 

The stiffness underfoot paired with the heavily tapered tips mean these don’t plane on top of the snow as much as just punch (or even “spear”) through it, but the same tapered shape in the back and loads of rocker behind the binding mean the tails release very easily. Even when things get cut up or there’s hidden treasure (frozen moguls) inside storm snow, the ski has plenty of backbone to stay composed. 

“My favorite run was when we got 5 inches of cowboy pow on top of rain crust from the day before. It floated through the new snow like a dream, and when I hit the re-frozen crud underneath it still skied super well,” says another POWDER Week tester.

On firmer snow, the Revolt 112 can definitely hang, but don’t expect to be able to carve it particularly well. The tip doesn’t engage into a turn the way a more traditional ski would, there’s just too much taper. Drive into the front of your boot, and nothing really happens—I found the tips tended to wash out if you tried to do that. Instead, if you remain more upright and drive the ski from the center, it responds immediately and lets you slarve and smear turns at will, no matter the speed. They’re really fun to ski in chalk, particularly on those spines that build up at the edge of steep groomers on sunny and cold afternoons.

Finally, I did mount a pair of these up with a set of Marker Duke PT hybrid touring bindings and took them on a few short tours out the boundary gates of Jackson Hole. They’re heavy, and they’re definitely not touring skis, but finding long lanes of untracked pow is surely worth the adventure. I actually think mounting a pair of heavy-duty hybrid bindings like a Shift 16, CAST Freetour or Duke PT makes a lot of sense. They’re certainly not firm-snow or dedicated park skis for the resort, so the durability of an alpine-only binding isn’t purely necessary—with a hybrid binding, you’ll have the option to head out the gates or go for a short skin from your snowmobile to access real pow.

Comparisons 

The unique shape and flex pattern of this ski makes it pretty hard to compare to other things out there. To me, it definitely falls into the category of “specialty powder tool,” akin to the Armada Whitewalker, 4FRNT InThayne or even some custom skis from brands like Wagner or Folsom. 

Despite being from the same line as the Revolt 114, the 112 is nothing like that much more directional freeride ski. In mountain bike terms, the 114 feels like a thoroughbred 29” downhill race bike, while the 112 feels like that trendy mini-mullet freeride bike all the cool kids are riding these days. The 114 rewards aggressive, traditional ski technique and wants to go fast, straight down the fall line, where the 112 wants to play around, spin and trick features, ski switch, and just have fun.

Perhaps the closest-feeling ski might be the new Armada Whitewalker 108 (or the existing Whitewalker 116). It’s kind of funny that these both came out during the same season. They share a similar shape, with ludicrous tip and tail rocker/taper, and have similar flex patterns (stiff underfoot, noodle-like in the tip and tail). The main difference lies in the damping and ride quality in less-than-ideal snow. The Whitewalkers and their lighter weight construction get tossed around and start to feel sketchy quickly whereas the extra nearly 300 grams of mass (and stiffer, thicker core) mean the Revolt 112 remains quiet and composed.

What type of skier is the Völkl Revolt 112 best for? 

As you might have deduced by now, the Revolt 112 is not a ski for everyone. In fact, I’m not sure all that many people will actually have fun on this ski, but for those with a certain ski style (jibby, bouncy, playful) it’s going to be one of the best choices out there. The combination of stability at speed and composure in funky snow paired with soft, buttery tips and tails and very surfy shape make for one hell of freestyle ski for deep days.