2027 Volkl Revolt 96

For 2027, the Volkl Revolt 96 gets a sweet graphic update but returns otherwise unchanged. The Revolt 96 is a highly versatile twin tip that’s at home both in and out of the park. You’ll see some of the world’s best slopestyle skiers choosing it as their competition ski, but it’s also perfectly appropriate as a fun, do-it-all all-mountain ski. We’ve always been impressed with the value Volkl infuses into the Revolt 96. They do a great job keeping the price down by using relatively simple construction, while creating a ski that is fun, well-rounded, and that will satisfy a lot of different skiers. With a nice solid feel, these skis hold up well to aggressive skiing when needed.

While Volkl saves a lot of the sophistication and engineering for the Mantras and Peregrines of the world, the Revolt build is still quite effective for what it needs to do. We get a multilayer wood core, some fiberglass, epoxy, and it’s all pressed together in sandwich construction with vertical sidewalls and a little bit of a mini cap finish for durability. Volkl achieves a lot just with these materials and does a good job controlling flex pattern and feel through the thickness and milling of the wood core, eliminating the need for more expensive additive materials. Interestingly, despite being simple, it’s not exceptionally light, coming in at slightly over 2000 g in the 181 cm length. It’s not detrimental to its performance, rather gives a nice stable feel for landing big jumps and skiing faster, but it’s good to know for those who are particularly looking for a lightweight twin tip. If you are, it might be worth looking elsewhere, and even the symmetrical Revolt 90 comes in considerably lighter. That said, a lot of skiers will appreciate the heftiness of the Revolt 96. While not necessarily stiff, the heavier feel translates to a more confidence-inspiring feel when skiing faster and more aggressively. Tester Caleb Carbonneau notes: "I thought this was a fun ski that was able to take on most terrain. It did well when carving on trail allowing for tight turns, but it also handled well in bumps having some forgiveness making them easy to control."

The Revolt 96 relies on heavy use of taper in the tips and tails to create high mobility and easy smearing and steering. This has modernized the ski, and it’s a shape we see used in a lot of twin tips these days. That buttery feel and the ability to flick the ski from forward to switch and back is largely thanks to that early taper. If anything, it makes the ski feel a bit shorter than it is when you’re trying to maneuver it quickly. That comes in handy both in and out of the park. Outside of the park, it increases performance in bumps and trees as the ski is easier to pivot. Inside the park, it makes it more forgiving, while allowing for easier nose butters, switch takeoffs, and any other maneuver where you need the ski to release easily. Matt McGinnis states: "My first impression is that this ski is probably really fun for park skiers who spent their entire day taking park laps. As an all mountain ski it leaves a lot to be desired, but in the park, it seems like it would be really easy to throw around on jumps and rails."

We do think this makes for a great freestyle and slopestyle option, but it doesn't have to be limited there. Remember the weight, as it’s not super light. If you’re new to park skiing or if you’re a lighter weight skier yourself, it could be worth going with a lighter ski, but a lot of bigger and more aggressive skiers will find success in the Revolt 96. If you keep the edges sharp and go a bit further back in the ski for a mount, you'll have more directional success.