'Tough' challenge brings colleagues together

Dropping 15 feet into a pool of mud. Jumping into a Dumpster filled with ice and water. Dashing through 10,000 volts of electricity. 

Those are the makings of a bad day at the office, but a great day at play for five “Michels Mudders” who represented Michels Northeast operations at the Western New York Tough Mudder event Saturday, Aug. 1. The Michels Power team was organized by Jenny Sommers, and included Greg Peebles, Matt Hubert, Mike Borchardt and Zack Landmark.

Several of the team members didn’t know one another well at the beginning of the 10-mile event, but that changed by the time they crossed the finish line four hours later.

“We stuck together, a total team effort,” Sommers said. “There were things that I wouldn’t do in a million years, but they cheered me on and I did them. We were all a little anxious at the start, but we were determined to finish it together – and we did.”

The Michels Mudders plan to reunite for next year’s event, and they hope to recruit many others from Michels Northeast operations to join them.

“Once you’ve been through this together, you know you have a teammate you can count on,” she said.