When it's cold my Indy cross ram is difficult to start. There's a lot of plenum to puddle fuel in. I personally had a bad experience cranking with the ignition off and then hitting the switch, BOOM. I have found if you pump it a few times and let it sit 30-45 seconds it helps a lot. If it's really cold I through a cloth fender cover over the carbs. I hold the end of the cover with my hand through the window. When it fires just pull it off. Works very well.
Doug