End of an era
But as we all know, endings are just beginnings.
- Mike Oldfield, Amarok
Apparently, Jimmy Chin (nerfcoyote) announced a while ago that he'd be retiring his Yippee Coyote fursuit at the end of April this year (and except for the "the suit will be auctioned off" part, it was not an April Fool's joke).
That's certainly an era coming to an end; Yippee was probably one of the most well-known fursuits in the fandom, and certainly one of the oldest remaining ones, too, initially having been built for Halloween 1996. FCN 2011 this weekend was his last con appearance (here's a video featuring him in the Variety Show), although he'll still attend two parades in April.
In the words of nerfcoyote himself (quoted from the EF15 conbook):
Although Yippee has won a couple costume award ribbons, and tied for second place at his ConFURence 8 debut, it's not been about the awards or fame or tournament wins or money, but about entertaining people. Through this thirteen-year-old heap of browned upholstery foam and threadbare fur I've brought smiles to countless faces, beyond the convention halls. He's not just me-with-fur, but he's an idealized character I'd want to be, and through his antics and spending much time not just inside his head, but in his mind, I've grown as a person. If you spend enough time with a smile stuck on your head, you can't help but smile on the inside as well.
Yippee won the fursuittourney Tournament of Champions, too, no doubt thanks to his amazing ability to entertain and to make people smile and laugh; a worthy end to many fun-filled years.
Goodbye, Yippee! ^^
(And as nerfcoyote hinted at, there hopefully will be a Yippee v2 suit that should be ready in October. :))