Actually, it sounds like you and I are on the same page. When I surfed the North Shore, I had a buddy that liked to go out on the biggest days possible. I went out on a few times and it felt, to me, like being towed behind a ski-boat at 60mph (just skipping across the face of the wave).
I was assuming kite size and wind speed were inversely proportional (stronger wind+smaller kite=same speed). I suppose that idea probably stands true to some degree but I think I see your point. Just like with surfing; I'd rather be out carving on a small to medium day than getting flung across the water, out of control, on a big day.
As far as a buddy, as luck would have it, I just found out that one of my new copilots decided he wants to try it also. He just picked up a 16m kite. He can't remember the manufacturer (we're on the road right now), and he's Danish, so he'd have a tough time explaining it anyway. jk
I appreciate your vote of confidence. I have three young children, trust me, my days of going out blindly into the abyss are over (they were fun while they lasted).
My buddy has a Boost II DVD, so I'm going to check that out. He's also taking a very safe approach. He told me that he's watched the video twenty times already and plans to watch it "a hundred more." Also, I found a pretty good site with free downloads of instructional tips and tricks.
http://kitefilm.com/eng/weeklytrick.asp
Thanks again for the help. I'll let you know how it goes.