He took the staff with a nod. That would be useful, to have something to test the boards with other than his own foot. And he didn't have any real problem with being the one to do it. Someone had to, right? Plus he was just as anxious as anybody to get this thing over and done with, and standing around wasn't going to make that happen.
"Alright, I'm heading on across, then." He glanced at the other members of the group. "Unless someone really wants to object."