Knitting Olympics

4 years ago, I knew how to do the knitted cast on, cast off, knit, purl, kfb and k2tog. However, I had only ever knit Wrap with Love squares and one or two slightly demented garter stitch or stocking stitch scarves. Knitting was also a bit of fits and spurts thing for me throughout my uni life (and even more sporadic during my childhood). I think the only reason it had gained some traction during my uni life was the ABC 702 Knit In.

However, about 4.5 years ago, my friend Erin caught the knitting bug (this may have been due to the fact that had already caught Harry Potteritis) making Slytherin scarves and inspired me to join her. We fed off each other a bit (although I made no HP scarves) and when she told me about the 2006 Knitting Olympics I thought it was great and we both jumped in. Now Erin and I are both a bit odd (to put it mildly) so we got really into it. I even started a really unspectacular blog to document my progress.

The rules of the Knitting Olympics include:

1. The project must be a challenge for you to complete in 17 days.
2. There are no rules about what a challenge would be. Like the real Olympics, there are many areas to compete in. If you are a new knitter, then a garter stitch baby sweater might do...If you are experienced, use your own conscience.

The project I choose was a very simple hat. The link to the pattern doesn't work anymore but suffice to say it was a hat with 4x4 ribbing down the bottom and then stocking stitch knit flat. (I will point out that I think the pattern was wrong as the pattern didn't even match the picture and I think there were gauge issues too.) This hat probably doesn't meet the rules in terms of a challenge (actually I'm fairly certain it doesn't) but it was certainly a psychological challenge for me. This was the first thing I knit that wasn't actually a blanket square or a straightforward scarf (which were badly made - sorry Pam!) This was the first item of clothing I'd ever made and it started me on the downward (or perhaps upwards) spiral to being a full obsessed knitter.

When the 2008 Beijing Olympics came round and Ravelry ran the Ravelympics I didn't participate. I'm not sure why. Maybe I was under pressure at the time. I'm not sure it just didn't feel right. I know that Stephanie (the woman that invented the Knitting Olympics) said that really the Knitting Olympics should only be every 4 years (it makes sense - there is only swimming at the Olympics every 4 years) and I agreed with that. I think the other thing that didn't sit right with me was the ideals. In the Ravelympics (as far as I understand), you compete in different events like knitting a hat or socks or something and you can do more than one and the challenges don't have to be hugely difficult. (I'm not against other people doing the Ravelympics. I think its great if that's what you want to do. Maybe on another day, I might actually choose to do them.) That's what the Knitting Olympics was about challenging yourself. While my first Knitting Olympics project in hindsight was not at all that difficult, or time consuming, it did change my life. It made me a knitter. I think that's why I have a soft spot for them.

So with the 2010 Winter Olympics coming around again, I began thinking about a project to knit for them that would be a challenge. To me, it didn't really matter if the whole world didn't care about it, or Stephanie didn't run it or anything. The Knitting Olympics have a soft spot in my life and for me, I need to keep going with that. It's similar to how the Summer Olympics mean so much to the Crown Prince and Princess of Denmark, as its where they met. So the fact that there is now an Official Knitting Olympics thing going is great, but wouldn't change anything if it did (I'm probably not going to be caught up in the hype as much).


I guess this is a long winded way of saying I plan to start knitting the Manly Sweater from Stitch n Bitch by Debbie Stoller and hope to finish in 17 days (this would be the first sweater I ever actually finished if successful). I hope to blog the ride.