Not crazy
My husband and I are nearly the same size - not big... we never could manage the stoker locked in start method although that was the one we were "taught". I think that if both riders are very similar (height) and weight - it is easiest to do synchronized starts. When I think about it, the only tandem teams that we have seen have had much smaller stokers than pilots -- perhaps that is why the "normal' way to start/stop is stoker up. Since I am the stoker, I also appreciate getting a chance, when we do have to stop, to be able to step down.