I’ve just discovered the world of competitive sock knitting. The tip of this iceberg – at least, the tip that I found – can be spotted on Ravelry in the Sock Madness Forever discussion group. In keeping with March Madness, their big sock knitting event kicked off in March. And though it will run a bit longer than the inspirational basketball tournament, they’ll work down to a Final 10 instead of a Final 4 teams.
Currently these intrepid knitters are in the throws of Round #3. As far as I can tell, it works like this. Toss your hat into the ring via email (nearly 500 brave knitters did so this year) and receive the sock pattern for Round 1, the qualification round. Two weeks are allotted for completion of this pair of socks.
Competitive Sock Knitting, Round #1
This year, the Round 1 sock was this little gem:
Knitters finishing this pair are placed on one of ten teams, and the Round 2 pattern is released.
Competitive Sock Knitting, Round #2
This second elegant sock pattern came from Carrie Van Kessel.
The first knitters across the line pulled their socks off (on?) in something like 48 hours. Forty-eight hours of sock knitting. Twenty-four hours per sock, less eating time, chatting about it on Ravelry time and some sleeping time, I hope. And there’s lots to chat about in this Ravelry group, including some topics perfectly relevant to those of us who knit at a more leisurely pace.
For example:
- Pro’s and Con’s of knitting socks toe-up
- Directions for making your own yarn swift
- Relief for Aching Hands
And, if Sock Madness Forever isn’t quite enough for you, check out this video of the latest Norwegian attempt to wrest the sheep-to-sweater championship from the Australians.