Hello everybody!
Thanks for all of your input on my Pre-Approval thread! It has been an exciting time indeed as things wrap up and I transition towards membership. :-D
Yesterday I had my first opportunity to troop as a TK. It was a BLAST. The event was called Radiothon, and it was held at the Children's Hospital in London, Ontario (and I'm told it raised $172,352 CAD for the Children's' Health Foundation! It was wild). Several costuming groups were invited, and throughout the day characters ranged from Disney princesses/princes to Star Wars to Superheroes. Members of the Canadian Garrison attended, and though I'm not yet approved, I got to stand with them for the afternoon (except for a few 501st promo shots, which is totally understandable).
The officer and the pilot in the image above have been friends of mine for some time and they have been helping me greatly on my pathway into the 501st. :-D
This shot is a combination of 501st, Rebel Legion, Heroically Ever After (our local hobby group) and of course, R2.
I have done plenty of costume outings before, but none quite like this one. It was the first time I have been in a movie-accurate costume, for one. Also, standing as a TK next to a 501st Vader, with his breath and voicebox booming, was chilling. And no costume malfunctions! That was a relief, given it was the longest stretch of time I have worn the suit so far.
Here are my takeaway notes from the first troop:
- Helmet fans are AWESOME. I highly recommend them. I'm using Henry's Helmet Fans. I have now experienced trooping with and without them, because ...
- My fan battery lasts just over 2 hours. The troop yesterday was 3 hours. As soon as they flicked off, my lenses almost instantly fogged up and I could feel the heat rising inside my bucket. I'm using a Duracell 2600 Mah portable phone charger, and I have a couple of extras, but I think I'll look into a bigger power supply rather than count on swapping them out mid-troop.
- Although I can walk fine, my left leg made a clicking sound when I stepped unless I was careful. I'm reconsidering trimming cutouts behind my knees to prevent this and increase mobility.
I don't know when my next troop will be, but I expect it won't be until after Legion elections are done and (hopefully) I have been assigned a TKID. Joseph sent me some stickers for my bin (Thanks again!!), and I'm waiting to put them on until I'm an official member.
I'll post back here as I continue tinkering. Talk to you soon, troopers! :-D