You are absolutely correct.

I put a 1" red stopper ball on a loop of line, and attached it through the head of the PIN (NOT TO THE RED LOOP ITSELF).

The most important part here is that you can feel it with cold hands without looking... it's nearly impossible to find that stupid red loop with cold hands while getting dragged at 20mph, much less get your finger inside it. I am speaking from experience here unfortunately.

Way to go thinking about your gear. You should also add a ring to one of the front lines for flagging the kite and self landing.