I am surprised by claims made by you and others that you are almost always up at some time. I seem to always be down big early in VP and struggle all day to get even. That is why I have done 2 things in the last few years and it has helped dramatically.

1. I start with Bonus rather than my preferred DDB, Super Aces, and TDB. It helps avoid the early big losses although I hate blowing those Aces with a kicker.
2. I have used a Singer like progression in denominations effectively.