I think its some of both. pretty sure your firmware mods did most of this But i haven’t tried it out yet. also looking for more general solutions that would work for any esc not just vesc.
@Ackmaniac Both and not just for the VESC but any ESC. Also an easy mode for beginners with a limit on max throttle. I want it to be tune-able so you can not only adjust the ramp speed but the ramp curve. I terrified to let anyone else ride my board because it is so easy to give it a little too much throttle and hurt yourself.
@saul What ever code you have, please let me see it. I’m pretty good at CTRL C & V 
and I might be able to get something working. I’m no coder at all but I’m good at solving problems.