A legendary name returns
Just in my few years working at the shop, I’ve seen different iterations of the “Wailer” from DPS. From the Pure1 construction to Alchemist, the Wailer stood by as their all-mountain freeride skis. The Wailer wasn’t anything specific–it just differentiated the men’s from the women’s. Now, as DPS has transitioned fully to unisex skis, the Wailer returns with its own brand new construction. Our initial impressions? Fun, lively, with classic DPS trims. We dive into how the Wailer series is different than Kaizen and how it feels on snow in our DPS Wailer 100 Review.
DPS Wailer 100 Review: Field Notes
The new Wailer series comes in three waist widths; 90, 100, and 107. Each is offered in a full-size run. DPS brings back the RP style shaping and each ski gets a 15-meter turn radius in every size. Internally, the skis feature a simpler construction than the design-heavy Kaizen. The Wailer hosts a poplar wood core, fiberglass laminate, and carbon stringers. No full sheets of carbon or multi-layer wood strips, just a good old-fashioned poplar core with reinforcements we see around the ski market. Of course, you still get the high-end construction and build with sustainable practices, setting DPS builds apart from others.
Per usual with the tight turn radius DPS skis, there’s significant rocker in the tip and tail of these skis. That said, its far from a twin tip style. There’s much more rocker in the tip than the tail, and the mount point is further back. The ski has a lot of
At 5’8″ and 130lbs, I skied on the 171cm for both the Wailer 100 and Wailer 107. We got to spend an extended amount of time on the skis in Crested Butte during the Blister Summit, and shredded them in a variety of resort conditions.
Groomers
Groomed terrain is always a great way to get a feel for a ski right off the bat. You can litmus test the edge-to-edge agility, its speed limit, and its energy. I was super impressed with the Wailer on my first few turns. It felt remarkably quick to transition between turns. The softer tip made it easier to flex into than some other stiffer, directional skis. So even though you might have more tip in front of you than a more progressive ski, it’s easier to engage.
I found the edge hold to feel really reliable, even on some firmer stretches of snow or early icy mornings. It’s not the most supremely damp ski, but it never feels untrustworthy. Which is impressive with how much rocker the ski has.
With the tight turn radius, opening up this ski to GS-style turns at super high speeds isn’t its specialty. But I really enjoyed the energy had and how quick it was. If you’re more interested in long turns, the Rossignol Sender 94 Ti or Head Kore 99 are great options in this category.
Bumps and Trees
This is where that short turn radius comes to shine. This ski was amazing in bumps. It’s highly responsive and is eager to take the zipper bump lines. The deep taper keeps the ski very maneuverable, even in the tightest of bump lines and trough-like bumps. While we were skiing at CB, there were plenty of deep valleys between the bumps, and this ski navigated them like a chef’s knife through butter. For me, I felt the ski is one of the most agile out of the upcoming skis for this season.
Finding a line through tighter trees (especially some of the steep tree lines we found) felt intuitive. That’s always been a strength of the DPS skis with this shaping, but it feels especially true with this new ski. With softer tips, the ski doesn’t get bucked off a line or feel too harsh. It allows you to slip up a little and feel like you can recover.
The carbon stringers and poplar core are a dynamic duo that help add loads of energy to the ski. Mixed with the maneuverable shape, it provides a lively ride that’s just fun when picking your way through this terrain.
Again, I think this ski thrives with a slightly more directional style; it’s just easier to get into that position with the softer tips. It doesn’t necessarily want to be skied with a very centered stance and pivot around bumps and trees, but it’s easy enough to release the tails when needed as long as there’s some pressure on the shovels.
Powder and Mixed Snow
For 100mm underfoot, the Wailer 100 floats quite well for the size. That’s likely thanks to the deep rocker and taper in the tip, which really helps make this ski meet the qualifications for the elusive one-ski-quiver. I loved the energy that carried over to soft snow, making me feel like a bunny rabbit bounding through the snow.
With the tight turn radius, charging through mixed snow isn’t their strength. The maneuverability gained from the deep tip taper and rocker don’t lend the ski to tracking through heavy chop at speed. But if you ski with a bit more finesse and embrace the short turns, you can find a good line through the snow. I do think the more compliant construction allows the ski to feel more forgiving (and easier to ski) than the Kaizen series, but does come with a little more weight. For pure powder, there’s not much better out there than the Kaizen 112. But, if you’re looking for an all-mountain ski with some chops for soft snow, the Wailer 100 will give you good bang for your buck.
Bottom Line
Not many directional skis don’t come with quadruple metal laminates and are kevlar reinforced. Having the Wailer as a flickable, softer flexing, directional ski is refreshing to add to the ski market. It feels similar to the K2 Mindbender Cs, with a quicker turn radius that is happy taking lots of turns and rewards skiers who like to ski with finesse.
Both wider Wailers feel narrower than they are, and the Wailer 100 feels super nimble for all-mountain skiing while packing a punch for softer snow conditions. To be honest, while the Pagoda 100 and other 100 RP shapes were always fairly easy to swing around, the stiffer construction made them feel a little more demanding, just by needing to flex into the ski more aggressively. I think the Wailer 100 blends the quickness of the shape in a much more accessible and forgiving construction. That makes it perfect for intermediates looking to level up, or experienced skiers who like a directional ski that doesn’t beat them up too much.
