ExSTRAVAganza

A few times a week my partner is out and about, he goes either running or cycling.
You can call me many things, but you would hardly mistake me for Sporty Spice. Most of you know that I am on the sofa for the biggest part of the day. Nevertheless I have another way to sum up some miles, I knit. Seriously, the yarn for a single sock is about 400 meters (438 yards) long, mind you.

There is Facebook (an online community for people to chat and show off), Ravelry (an online community for people to chat and share knitting projects) and there is Strava. Strava is an online community where people record their athletic activities, such as running and cycling. With the Strava app my partner can even find out who he passed, or worse: by whom he was outpaced. And, as with every online community, there is of course the option of giving each other the thumbs up.
A few weeks ago a friend of mine and her husband had been cycling and were on their way home. The last part was mostly a straight line and her husband decided he wanted to get home fast by cycling with a speed of preferably 30 (19 miles) kilometers per hour or more. He is at least a head taller than my friend, so the game was a bit unfair. Soon she was lagging behind, but then she heard a voice telling her ‘help is on it’s way.’ And before she knew what was happening, she felt a hand on her back and she was gaining speed. She pedalled for all she was worth and felt like she was flying. ‘Let’s go get him,’ said the voice and a moment later they outpaced him with 40 (25 miles) kilometers per hour. I would have loved to see the face of her husband. My friend waved at the fellow cycler who took off and she must have felt really smug.
Too bad my friend is not on Strava, this way she could have found the friendly cycler who was in for a practical joke and give him the thumbs up.
It would be interesting to have an app that would compliment me on my peace and relaxation when my heart rate is below 60 beats per minute when I knit. Or, after finishing a sock, the app would make sure the theme tune of Rocky would blast from my phone – cheering me on as if I was crossing a finish line, while punching the air.

And here I was going to make a sneering remark about knitters not wearing a silly outfit. If you ask me, all men look unattractive in cycling gear. Not even Clive Owen or George Clooney (I wonder what my cycling friend thinks of this) would look good in Lycra.
However, I have a confession to make. When all my regular compression stockings are in the laundry basket (the same ones grannies wear), I wear CEP compression socks for runners. They still do not turn me into Sporty Spice, but I like to think of myself as the Bionic Knitter. Indeed, punching the air for every finished project including this written article. Wanna give me the thumbs up?

This post is also available in: Dutch