And it’s working. “Market share comes from building great skis that people want to look at and use,” says Benshoff. DPS is delivering on this, and their name is getting out there. From Engelberg to Portillo, and Alta to Revelstoke, skiers around the globe tune in for the DPS Cinematic’s festival-worthy short films, which drop intermittently throughout the winter. Falling in line with the trend, we’ve seen an up-tick in the brand’s presence in lift lines, trains, Thule rocket boxes, garages, and the minds of the snow-obsessed.
To confirm everything above and commit my knee to another night of frozen pea therapy, I recently hopped on a pair of the 2016-17 Wailer F 106s. Falling right between the DPS Wailer 99 and the Wailer 112RP, the Wailer 106 is available in two construction options—DPS’s Pure3, and the new Foundation, hence the letter preceding the length designation. The F 106s I found myself atop were developed based on the Foundation (F) Chassis Design ideology, which centers around the concept that ski design should start directly under the boot and move outward to the tip and tail. Through the blend of bi-phase bamboo and poplar with unidirectional carbon, the Foundation construction is, according to DPS Founder Stephan Drake, designed to “create a distinct DPS feel that can be sensed in every ski.”
After my first few turns on the F 106s, I immediately understood just what Drake was talking about. Presented as DPS’s more traditional and financially approachable line, The Foundation construction provides a unique combination of dampness and power. During the test, whether I was mashing through chop, slicing windbuff, hammering moguls or ripping groomers the ski seemed predictable and strong when and where I needed it.
We started the ski test on the open face of James Peak at Powder Mountain, where the skis’ soft shovels and shorter turning radius allowed them to ski tight and powerful turns through the windbuff powder. The springy snow and stiffer tails propelled the skis from edge to edge, popping me out of each turn with ease and confidently initiating successive turns through the soft shovel and forward edge.