And she clicked the fastest needles in the West...

29/02/2008

Hazel Tindall from Shetland has once again retained the world speed knitting title.

 

The fastest knitters in the world gathered to cross needles and hooks in the speed knitting and speed crocheting world championships in Minneapolis and Hazel beat off four fierce challengers from Holland, France, Canada and the USA in three attempts using her custom built steel knitting needles.

Her best performance of a staggering 262 loops, or stitches, in three minutes beat her own record set in 2004, and put her well ahead of her nearest rival, Dutchwoman Miriam Tegels, who managed a mere 243 loops.

According to a report in the Shetland Times, Hazel did a straight knit with no purl, using 5mm needles she was given by a blacksmith in North Carolina last October. yet she claims that there are still plenty of knitters in Shetland who could give her a run for her money.

“I’m sure that I could be challenged, but sadly probably not by anyone under 50 because hand knitting is a skill which is rapidly vanishing. The future doesn’t bode well for hand knitting. There are some still doing it, but I think the average age is about 70. Anyone under 50 hasn’t grown up with the ethos that you shouldn’t sit hand idle.”

Hazel, who is a school budget planner, learned to knit before she was 5 and grew up knitting the yokes of Fair Isle sweaters for pocket money as a youth. She started knitting for trophies when she heard about the first Knit-Out competition in which the winner achieved 180 stitches in three minutes.

The original article and image first appeared in The Shetland News.