A Day Out

It becomes a bit much when attending a training course can be considered a day out, but the training course I went on today was just a little bit different.

I work in a high st shop for one of the mobile networks, and today an event was organised in London to pick up info on one of the latest Nokia mobile phones, the Nokia 5800.

Now, it needs to be said, I am a bit of a mobile phone geek, so much so I have another blog that talks mainly about a certain type of mobile phone, the Nokia Nseries range. The Nokia 5800 is very similar to the Nseries handsets, it uses the same operating system, and has a really good range of features. The 5800 is the first consumer focused touch screen device.

The training course was held in London, and when I arrived at the hotel location I had to sign a disclaimer for the days 'activities'. I absolved the organisers from any liability for any injury I suffered, and the list was horrendous! Sliding down mud banks, getting run over, medical fees, all sorts. The responsibility for any mishap was mine and mine alone! I very nearly refused to sign, I have no time for such fooling around, I thought. But, curiosity got me, that and the fact I had to do the course or go back to work in the shop!

As it turns out it was one of the best training courses I've ever participated in. Normally with a new phone we get trainers who will highlight the main features of the phone, we then get some hands on time with the product, and that's it. Fine for me, being a geek, but a bit samey after a while. The disclaimer thing promised this would be a bit different, and it was. We were all split into pairs, and given one of the new phones. After a brief session that highlighted the main points, we were sent out around London with the phone and a list of objectives that had to be completed within two hours! At each of the locations we had to perform a task with the phone, either taking a picture and editing it, then sending it back to the base, or saving it as wallpaper, recording video clips, and navigating around town with the built in GPS facility. Pretty basic stuff really.

What really made the day was the tasks! These included a session in the boxing ring throwing some punches, being locked in a room at minus 10 for a minute, rowing 500 metres in two minutes on a rowing machine in a gym, driving a golf ball on a virtual reality golf course and dancing! It was an excellent day, really good fun, and I know I shall sleep well tonight. I'm pooped!

One of the first tasks we completed was the dancing. I didn't volunteer, my partner decided for me that I would dance whilst he 'DJ'd' using the music player on the phone. I don't think I did too good, but even so I got nominated for best dance!! (Probably in sympathy I think!) Back at the base when prizes were handed out I had to stand up in front of the whole room and recreate my slick moves for everyones amusement! But it was good fun, and the girl I danced with was very nice and a good sport.

The golf driving range was also good; I've never played golf before but managed a shot of 187 yards. My colleague was less successful, on one swing he completely missed the ball and hit the floor with the club. Thing is, he hit it so hard the ball actually fell off the tee and rolled a little across the floor, and the machine measured his drive at 4 inches! Very funny.

Overall the whole event was great fun, and I'd certainly do it again. I'm glad my curiosity got the better of me!