2013 DPS Wailer 112 RP Hybrid Review

Take a quick look around the internet and you'll see a lot of excitement for this ski - the TGR forums alone a aglow with rave reviews for the DPS Wailer 112.

A lot has been said about this ski - but wait it boils down to is this ski brings the powder ski and all mountain ski categories closer than before. RP means resort powder, and a powder day at a resort can mean fresh tracks in the morning ... giving way to tracked out, chopped up snow and a few groomers as the day wears on.

It used to be that if you wanted to ski your powder skis, you brought a second pair of all mountain skis in the car for the afternoon - with the DPS 112, you don't have to make the switch.

The hybrid design blends tip and tail rocker and taper with underfoot camber and sidecut - what's known as a 5-point design. DPS didn't invent this, the very successful Rossignol S7 uses a very similar profile.

What DPS did was fine tune that shape, giving it a shorter turning radius, a stiffer flex underfoot and in the tail, and using their unique materials and construction - all to make it a supremely versatile ski in the powder, through the crud and down the groomers.

The rocker in the tip and tail mean DPS could make the ski stiffer while maintaining playful ease in the powder - so it has better than average edge-grip in it's width category.

As mentioned above, the tapered tip and tail brings the widest points of the ski closer together, meaning it has a tighter sidecut and a shorter turn radius.

Photo from DPS

Start Haus' Philpug put a year on these banana skis:
"This ski is one of the most versatile powder skis around. What I really like is how nimble it is in the trees - even in the longer lengths (190 cm). It's really playful and light. I liked the hybrid construction better than the pure carbon for dampness and crud busting - the pure may be better for backcountry skiers who want to shave weight."

Shop 2013 DPS Wailer 112 RP Hybrid here: