One More Row

If all had gone to plan, by the time you read this, Milli Abrams, a yarn shop owner, would have left the Canary Islands and started her solo row across the Atlantic Ocean. Mother Nature, however, always has the final say and the race start has been postponed until Monday.

But if all goes as planned from here on out, Abrams will arrive in Antigua at the end of January.

And, yes. She is bringing a knitting project with her. It’ll probably be something in cotton. It definitely won’t be silk because it always catches on her callouses.

Abrams is no stranger to the sea. In 2010, after time spent in the UK’s Territorial Army as a medic and in private life as an accountant, she, her husband, and young son lived aboard a 46’ catamaran. Their intention was to sail around the world. That dream was cut short by a hurricane, which triggered a health issue for Abrams.

Time passed. Abrams opened Tribe Yarns near St. Andrews in Scotland. Her son grew up. She realized she was about to have a milestone birthday.

“The sea is always calling me,” she said. “And I guess, although I didn’t know it at the time, I wanted to do something big for my 50th birthday. To see where I am and what I’m capable of.

“As [ocean rower] Abhilash Tomy puts it ‘some journeys cannot be explained…you do not pause to ask why. The very moment I begin to question, my voyage is already lost.’

“I think if I’d stopped and thought about why, it might have stopped me in my tracks. [Rowing across the ocean] is the most disruptive, hard, and illogical thing for me to choose to do right now. But I can’t now not imagine it happening.”

Abrams signed on with The World’s Toughest Row, which is a 3,000 mile solo row that consists of up to 40 teams who raise money for charities. She will be unsupported throughout the trip, which means she’ll need to pack everything into her craft with her. In case of an emergency, she will have a satellite phone.

At first glance, knitting and rowing don’t have much in common. Dig a little deeper and there are echoes.

“Both involve two sticks and moving slowly, with repetitive motions that are entirely offline and decided upon by the knitter/rower,” Abrams said. “Ocean rowing is definitely about (very) delayed satisfaction, just like knitting a garment. Both involve more than a little patience, practice, and imperfection. Both involve counting, rhythm, charts.

“In my case, both are solitary pursuits, but surrounded by community. Mostly, for me, they both offer the opportunity to really be in the moment,” she said.

Knitting and any big journey also force you to push your own boundaries.

“I truly believe that that’s where life is juiciest, when we’re pushing out of comfort zones, and growing. Whether it’s with new techniques, new color combinations, new fibers, new approaches, new activities. It makes us more fulfilled and confident.

“I spend my life encouraging my knitters to be a little more adventurous, take an extra risk. And it takes some practice to get comfortable with being uncomfortable, but it’s so worth it. When you’re more resilient, you can enjoy more—and that starts with little things like trying something new in your knitting,” she said.

Abrams has already had an opportunity to practice her resilience. The race was scheduled to start on December 12. This week’s weather forecast didn’t like that plan. She and her craft the Tuc Tuc were supposed to push out on December 11, which then was pushed back to December 14.

You can follow her journey (and maybe her knitting?) on Instagram.