X-Runner: No match for Agilent team spirit!
Osmaston Manor, Derbyshire, UK
You’re probably thinking “what on Earth is this… X-Runner?” Wonder no more and read on to find out about one Agilent team’s adventure as we tackled all manner of obstacles one soggy Saturday in Middle England. Our ‘crew’ consisted of eight Agilent employees plus two friends who fancied a challenge and doing something a little bit different. Meet the gang:
We were as prepared as we could ever be to conquer 5km (or 10km) of obstacles such as ropes and barriers to be climbed over, mud to be waded through and swimming across open water. The atmosphere was brilliant, scores of people all set to go around the course in waves and we were the first group to be giving it a go. Adding to the excitement was the fact that we would all be doing this together, people from completely different areas within Agilent — Sales, remote support, informatics, site services and field engineering. We all speak daily to achieve a common goal, providing the best service to our customers, but today our goal was to simply have fun!
First, the warm up. Before we could even begin, we had to scale a metre-high fence… a sign of things to come. By now the weather had improved somewhat, the rain had petered out to a fine drizzle and the sky needed to cheer up a little but our spirits weren’t dampened. A few stretches, jumping jacks and jogging on the spot and we were off!
As we jumped over hay bales, crawled under netting commando style and waded thigh-deep through one of the many streams criss-crossing the country estate, I started to realise just what we’d gotten into. All of us had been training for this moment to some degree but that didn’t mean it wasn’t a struggle as we puffed our way up a sickeningly steep incline… urgh. No rest for the wicked at the top as we were faced with panels slanted towards us and we needed to be on the other side of them somehow. The team made it over, not elegantly mind you but we dragged ourselves up and over onto the side. No men were left behind as anybody who needed a helping hand was pulled over to join the rest of the team — the determination was real.
So far so good as we made our way onwards, Siân stomping through the mud whenever the opportunity arose. I was in stiches as mud splashed all over us as everybody ran past; some even got into a poor soul’s mouth, cue more laughter.
I really felt what I already knew, that Agilent is brimming with people who make the company so fun to work for. There were times when the obstacles were intimidating and people needed a little encouragement and courage to conquer them. Halfway around the course was a slide straight into the lake, bear in mind that it was a nippy day so it was freezing in the water! The initial shock of plunging into the water took your breath away, bracing isn’t the word. It was genuinely heart-warming to see everybody working together with team members encouraging others who hadn’t yet made it over an obstacle; this is what makes your colleagues your friends.
The course finished with a freefall off a platform onto an airbag then past the finish line. Some hardy souls went around twice. I was not one of those people… one go was shattering enough! Off we headed to fill our faces with some well-earned food, wearing our medals to serve as a memento of a fine day out with friends. Bring on the next one!
Editor’s note: Sara is remote support engineer based in the Cheadle office, UK and will have been with Agilent for 3 years in August. She joined immediately after graduating with an MChem and a year in Industry at the University of York. In her spare time she enjoys hiking all over the Peak District near where she lives and preparing for any upcoming races she might have to look forward to. Any free time she might have left over is spent watching anime and listening to science podcasts.
Stay tuned for more guest blogs from around the world on Agilent Careers. #AgilentGlobalFamily
