On your marks, get set, KNIT!

In a comment on my post from yesterday, Trashalou suggested that we time our knitting in order to compare knitting speeds. I think she was joking, but she should know better than to say these things to me EVEN IN JEST, because LOOK! I only go and turn them into a ridiculous reality!

As it happens, this is something I have already been pondering for a while. So, in the spirit of striking while the iron is hot tepid, now would seem like a good time to conduct my little experiment. Gentle Bloggers, I present to you:

** VC's Completely Pointless Knitting Speed Straw Poll **

Not very snappy, I grant you - but I will allow you to shorten it to the KSSP, if you must.

At the outset, I would like to make one thing clear: THIS IS NOT A COMPETITION TO BE THE FASTEST. The intention of the KSSP is not to identify the quickest knitter so that they can be awarded with a shiny crown; equally, I definately won't be expecting the slowest to feel shamed into committing hari-kari using their own pointiest wires (not least because I fully expect to be the slowest myself - so no need to worry about being 'last' if you really can't help thinking competitively about this).

No, my general aim is just to find out how much these things vary, as I'm curious about how far the range of speeds extends. Incidentally, I'm also very interested in that strange phenomenon whereby you feel like you're knitting really fast, but somehow your work doesn't seem to have grown very much by the end of the evening (or, very occasionally, vice versa). However, I'm not quite sure how we could measure that, so it will probably have to remain a mystery. Do other people get this too, sometimes? Apologies if it's just me.

"But", I hear you cry, "get to the point, please - what do you want us to do for this KSSP?". Well, I'm glad you asked, as I was just about to tell you. If you are a knitter, and if you can be bothered to take part, I ask you to do the following things (and it would probably be best if you could do them in the order given. It's just easier that way.)

** Taking part in the KSSP **

1) Find some knitting that you already have on the go, preferably something not too complicated - I'm interested in your standard speed, which I might not get if you're following a fancy pattern. If you don't have any knitting-in-progress, it's really not worth starting something new for the sake of the KSSP. It's just not that important. Ooh, unless you want to start a square for Oliver's Blanket - a far, far worthier aim than the KSSP.

2) Look at a clock, and note the time.

3) Start knitting.

4) After a minute has passed on the clock, stop knitting (if, like me, you need to look at your hands to be able to knit, it may be necessary to find an accomplice who can watch the clock).

5) Count the number of stitches you have knitted during the timed minute.

6) Leave me a little comment on this post, telling me the number of stitches you counted in step 5).

And that's it. Admittedly, it sounds like quite a lot of work now I've typed it out (heck, you're probably thinking, "it's been hard enough work just reading this post"), so I won't be offended if you can't really be arsed. However, as a little incentive to give it a go:

** Anyone you does leave a comment with their stitches-per-minute count will be entered into a PRIZE DRAW **

I'm not sure what the prize will be yet, but it won't be anything too rubbish. And to give you all a bit of time to take part, let's say I'll do the draw and announce the winner on Friday next week.

Please note that it is NOT the fastest knitter who will get the prize - hence this is still not a speed competition. I will put the names of any participants in a hat, and pick out a winner at random. I'm not expecting many responses, so your chances are probably quite good if you do enter.

Oh pants, I've just thought of something else: I'm really, really sorry if you're not a knitter and you feel excluded. If any non-knitters are desperate to join in - which seems unlikely - you could just make up a stitches-per-minute figure. I'll never know, will I? (Truly, my pursuit of accuracy knows no bounds.) It might not be worth bothering, though, as the prize won't necessarily be very good. But please don't tell the knitters that.

So, to summarise for anyone who got lost amongst my verbal diarrhoea: knit for a minute; count the stitches; leave a comment about it; be in with a chance of winning a prize - winner to be announced next Friday.

The running of the KSSP will be governed by an equal opportunities policy, so I do welcome anyone at all to take part. If you've never left a comment before, then now is the perfect time to de-lurk! Please don't be shy. I'm very friendly. And if I get enough results, I'll make them into a lovely graph for you all to see (I do love a good graph). If no-one takes part except me, I'll probably make a very small graph anyway (ditto previous parenthesis).

So what are you waiting for? Go, dig out those timepieces, and knit...