Outdoor Power Equipment (Lawn Mowers, Snow Blowers, Chain Saws and more) Discussions

Gentlemen (and ladies if you're out there),

Last year I purchased A new Ariens 927LE and got quite a bit of use out of it here north of Toronto.
I did everything that was required maintenance-wise and at the end of the season i once again replaced the oil, added Sta-bil to my remaining gas before deciding to run the tank dry, and oiled and greased all appropriate parts in the springtime.
Yesterday I decided to fire it up for the first time this winter, and so put in fresh gas, opened the fuel-flow valve, set the engine to approx 70% RPM, put it on full choke, primed it 4-5 times and hit the electric start. Well the beast came to life right away but after sputtering and farting around for 30 seconds it died. I've since tried and tried to get it going again, but the most I get is about 15-20 seconds before she quits on me.
My question has to do with re-start procedures, and whether or not I'm doing them wrong. Specifically:

1. Should I be priming it after the first attempt? Does this help or am I only going to flood the engine?
2. After it's started once, do I leave it at full choke for subsequent attempts, or am I better opening it a little, or even all the way?
3. Should I set the engine at a higher power level, which is what I was originally doing when I first got my blower, as I thought it helped it "catch" better.
4. Do I risk doing any harm put attempting multiple rapid restarts, especially if I'm pushing on the electric start button for 5 seconds or more? Should I let it sit for a while?

As you can see, I need your finely attuned minds to guide me through this potential mechanical minefield..
all suggestions, observations would be a big help...

Speedbird.