I made a short trip to a nearby pond and got aquatinted with the new boat. Everything went fine, although the tops of my pants were soaking wet from water rolling down the paddle and my arms. The diversion grommets didn’t work. I tried moving them up and down the paddle but still got soaked.
I think it’s a direct result of two things:
I’m so tall that I’m sitting up high and my angle of stroke is more downward and upward (causing the water to pour down from the paddle)
I need to develop a more horizontal paddle angle and twist my core rather than high sticking like I used to paddle my canoe.
Kayak fisher also gave me a few pointers to try. Thanks!
I’ll wear light Frogg Togg rain pants next trip just in case.
The kayak was very stable, tracked well and loading and unloading was a breeze.

I even caught a few small bass and a pickerel on the adventure.
I call it a success!