2027 Volkl Revolt 86

The 2027 Volkl Revolt 86 gets a graphic update but returns otherwise unchanged. While we do believe you could use the Revolt 86 outside of the terrain park with some success, it remains true that park skiing is its focus. This is the ski you’ll see on the feet of slopestyle athletes as we head into any competition level. The Revolt line from Volkl is now home to a lot of different skis, but the heart and soul of the Revolt skis has always been freestyle, making the Revolt 86 a stalwart of the line. With a strong and supportive feel, the Revolt 86 works great when pushed to its limits.

Volkl uses a lot of sophistication and engineering in a lot of skis, and that does filter into the Revolt 86. They use a Multi-Layer Woodcore with fiberglass laminates and durable edges and base material. The Mini Cap finish to the construction gives the ski a playful and accommodating feel, while also further increasing durability. The use of bamboo in the core makes the ski a bit lighter while keeping the thickness and power fully intact. Park skis take a lot of abuse, and the Revolt 86 is very well designed to endure it. Ryan Nagle, a competitive slopestyle skier with years and years of experience, left us a nice note with some thoughts on construction. He described the Revolt 86 as feeling “Hearty. The ski has a lot of sustenance to it.” We agree, the Revolt 86 does have a supportive feel to it, which is important for landing big park jumps, but it’s also relatively light at 1840 g (180 cm length) and has a nice supple flex pattern. The thicker core profile underfoot makes the ski feel a lot more substantial than the width may let on.

Volkl hasn't changed the shape of this ski all that much over the past (nearly) decade. It’s not symmetrical in sidecut with a 10 mm difference between tip and tail, but we do see relative symmetry in its rocker profile, meaning you can mount your bindings true center for a very balanced feel in the park. One interesting thing about the Revolt 86 is it doesn’t use any early taper in its shaping. This gives it more of a traditional feel than a lot of skis on the market today. You get more feedback and responsiveness out of the tips and tails, as well as more precision. As an athlete-inspired ski for Volkl, we’re not surprised to see that, but it is interesting when compared to other skis on the market. It might reduce forgiveness a tiny bit, but we believe the Revolt 86 gets its forgiveness from softer flexing and thinner profile tips and tails, rather than needing shape to provide that. We also think this shape increases its ability outside of the park, something that tester Landel Cochran picked up on as well. “This ski is definitely at home in the park but it is also a great choice for the type of skier that likes to spend a lot of time in the air. A good choice for skiing switch and maximizing fun side terrain. Also fun to take around the resort without too much deep snow.” We found that the energy and rebound of this ski were also on the surprisingly fun side of the spectrum.

Built and shaped primarily for park and freestyle use, the Revolt 86 is fun, engaging, and very poppy. Outside of the park, it might not be as proficient, but skis like this can be extremely fun as an all-mountain ski. Trees, moguls, side hits, fun family runs, a lot is in play on the Revolt 86 and perhaps one of its biggest benefits is it’s quite easy to ski. With a thick underfoot zone and a traditional cambered profile and shape, these skis have a ton of rebound and pep to satisfy the needs of your everyday freestyle enthusiast.