@jpwhit Thanks for the thoughtful response. I ski at 32/33 mph. I still use the full rope length, as I'm still learning, but feel I'm picking it up fairly quickly. I definitely know I'm more of a limitation than the boat atm. I don't think I'd ever compete, and likely won't ski the course all that often (just open water ski). My wife skis at about 28 mph, so she's likely to be more affected that I with a crossover boat.
It's possible I'll still occasionally ski behind a 196, but it would likely be infrequent enough that any strong comparisons would be muted. I certainly know that I've been treated well in the first few years of my journey with this.
There's also a ski club near me that uses brand new Prostars, and that has been a blast too, although I'd say the 196 wake was better, but that is likely more about familiarity than anything else.
It's very possible that in a few years with my daughter getting more competitive in the sport (I hope), that I may decide to go the more pure route, but I definitely think for now I'd like to keep our options open while also maintaining a really good wake for slalom.
I kinda hate that to really enjoy both slalom and surfing that we're stuck in this weird place where buying 2 expensive boats is almost a necessity.