Remember three things that can have an effect on situations such as these;
1. The reported wind is an average and will only include gusts if the gust reaches 10Kt or more above the average. Thus a wind with a general variation of 15 to 25 Kt with the occasional gustfrom 15 straight to to 29Kt will be reported as 20Kt.
2. The wind above the surface will usually be stronger.
3. In the northern hemisphere when the windspeed increases, the direction veers. Thus in this case a gust will cause a change in direction which will at least partially compensate for the increase in speed. Taking keygrips idea in a 90deg crosswind will result in gusts causing more crosswind and perhaps a bit of tailwind. Opposite when down under!
Thus if you kick it straight early, you could be trying to hold it straight in an actual 30Kt+ crosswind despite the reported surface crosswind being only 20Kt.
Regards,
DFC