When it comes to shaping your surf wake, there are two basic factors to consider: length and push. Length refers to how far behind the boat the wave extends, while push refers to the amount of force a wave has to thrust the rider forward without the use of a rope. Unfortunately, to gain a significant amount of one, you must take away from the other. This is not to say that these boats cannot create wakes that have a great deal of both at the same time, but rather if you take them to the extreme, they tend to counteract one another. For example, you can probably create a surf wave right now that is 35’ long, but you’ll be hard-pressed to find a rider skilled enough to ride it without a rope. On the other end of the spectrum, you could create a chest-high surf wave that has so much push you can barely keep from riding it back into the boat, but this wave likely wouldn’t have the length most riders would prefer. For this reason, most riders tend to look for something closer to the middle of the spectrum, leaning more towards one or the other depending on their riding style. In case you were wondering how you can achieve more of one or the other, let’s explore the most common methods for adding length or push to your wave.