2025 Volkl Peregrine 80 & 82 - Introduction & First Impressions

We’ve seen a lot of name and ski changes so far in our 2025 ski previews, and Volkl carries that trend forward with their Peregrine line. By replacing the Deacon name with Peregrine, we get a few new models, but overall, the general ethos of the skis remains largely the same. The big story here is the change to Deacons 80 and 84, from both a build and a shape standpoint. The other models in the outgoing Deacon line will return structurally unaltered, but with a new namesake and graphics to match. As such, this specific overview will focus largely on the new skis in the lineup, the Peregrine 80 and 82.

Both the Deacons 80 and 84 have been stalwarts of the front side/all-mountain group for a while now, and for good reason. These skis carved impeccably clean and round turns on the groomers while offering more adventurous skiers a wider platform to stand on for softer or more broken snow. They featured a bunch of Volkl’s technology from a construction perspective, and that led to a very high-end feel and an incredibly precise performance level. One of the interesting things about the 80 and the 84 was the unique, and relatively flat, rocker profile. In the front side world, we’re generally used to seeing more camber in a carver, and these relied on other construction techniques to gain that grip and energy. This allowed the profile of the ski to be more amenable to versatile and all-mountain skiing—a feat that not a lot of other companies have been able to accomplish with their low to mid-80's skis.

From a construction perspective, the new Peregrine skis get the “tailored” material that we’ve seen filter into almost all of Volkl’s top end skis, and it makes a lot of sense, since it’s very successful in other models like Mantra. In the Peregrine 82 and 80, Volkl installs Tailored Carbon Tips in both, creating a precise and exact entry into the turn. They’re able to remove other material (titanal or fiberglass depending on width) to create this tailored feel—the vertical, horizontal, and diagonal carbon stringers make for a seamless entry into the turn with a light swing weight and a strong flex. In the 82, the Tailored Titanal Frame does the bulk of the heavy lifting. Both skis, it should be noted, carry forward a similar Multilayer Wood Core from Volkl consisting of poplar and beech stringers. The titanal frame on top of that core in the 82 opens up a lot of flexibility for the engineers as to where the ski is more or less dense or strong, as the wider metal zones deliver more dampness and grip while the narrower ones allow for greater mobility and quickness. This is incredibly important as it makes the ski feel a lot more consistent per length, so a skier in the 162 will feel similar performance characteristics as the skier on the 182. While Volkl isn’t including the 3D Ridge in their technology notes, it clearly still has a raised portion in the middle of the ski, which we’ve always felt contributes to the damp and sturdy feeling of the Deacon and has carried forward into Peregrine. Another build feature carrying through to Peregrine is 3D Glass. This fiberglass layer covers the whole base of the core and then turns upward at the sidewalls to create a 3-Dimensional structure. Any time this type of material is curved or bent, that increases the overall stiffness, and in the case of fiberglass, a lot more energy and pep as well. In the 80, the Titanal frame is replaced by a fiberglass one, and skiers will get a titanal band that runs the length of the ski through the middle to dampen vibrations and increase stability. Both skis continue the trend of containing a lot of different tech, making the ski feel and behave like a top-end product for sure.

Shape-wise, the new Peregrine 80 and 82 are more engaging than before. They both still use Volkl’s 3D Radius Sidecut but have adjusted the measurements to generate a more modern turn shape and style. While there’s a few mm taken out of the tips and tails in the 80, going from 128/80/111 to 126/80/109 in the 177. They’ve maintained the central cut of 15-meters in the underfoot radius, but have extended the tip and tail shape slightly, from 24 to 27 meters in the tips and from 21 to 23 meters in the tails. This provides a bigger range of turn style and shape while keeping the mid-section of the ski extremely precise and exacting. The previous Deacon 84 went from 132/84/115 to 128/82/111, so narrower overall. This new shape keeps the 15-meter central arc like the 80, and increases tip turn from 24 to 27 and tail curve from 21 to 23—relatively similar to the changes in the narrower ski. The visual difference between the shaping of the skis is the lower tip splay. This, in combination with the Tailored Carbon Tips, creates a more exact engagement with the snow and a longer effective edge. From a snow feel perspective, this contributes to a smoother overall feel and more direct contact with the terrain. The tip and tail rocker in both skis is very similar to that of their predecessors, as in, there’s kind of a lot. It’s long and very low, but there’s not a lot of positive camber underfoot—the technological construction makes up for the built-in energy that camber normally provides. As such, these Peregrine skis continue to be unique in this regard—not a lot of skis in this range have this much of a bend to them. Looking down at the ski, there’s not much taper to speak of—these skis still have a more square and angular shape to them, one of the main reasons why we continue to feel that they’re more in line with a wide front side ski rather than all-mountain. Either way you decide to use these skis, you’ll be impressed with their turning ability first and foremost, with versatility and adventure coming in behind that groomer performance.

At a Glance:

2025 Volkl Peregrine 82 Skis

The Peregrine 82 is a unique ski because it can be many different things at once. For many skiers, there’s no need to go wider than this from a groomer perspective, but it is nice to know that there’s a solid platform underfoot to handle adverse conditions and terrain. The main part of this ski that we enjoy is the mid-radius. While it can certainly go fast and take chances in longer arcs, the ski feels most at home in the mid-range, and that’s honestly where most of us live. On a firm groomer, this ski hooks into the turn quickly and easily, with the smoothness and dampness flowing through the central chord. The tail picks up the slack halfway through the turn, and propels you seamlessly into the next arc. The harder you push it through this process, the shorter the turn, but it’s no less dynamic. This is the 3D Radius at work in conjunction with the build. Fantastic in the bumps and on the firmer snow, it’s built to handle pretty much anything an on-piste skier could ever want.

At a Glance:

2025 Volkl Peregrine 80 Skis

While most advanced and expert skiers may want to wander into the land of the 82 and the added metal, do not sleep on this Peregrine 80. We think there’s a lot of opportunity here for most skiers. The 80 is incredibly quick and energetic, but don’t think just because it lacks the titanal frame that it has a far lower performance threshold. We found this misconception to be true about the Deacon 80 and were constantly reminded of that ski’s ability to make some of the most poppy and zestful turns out there. This ski operates in a more traditional manner—skiers who like a bit more of a short turn will really find a lot of engagement from tip to tail in this new ski. It’s so quick and easy to turn—there's fantastic grip and energy to the ski that makes it a very lively pairing for those that are looking to mix front side carves with shorter swing skids. This new Peregrine 80 is easy to ski but skiers will marvel at the composure and smoothness at higher speeds.