Poll: Will Kirk score at least 900 point?

Martin Gardner · Post by **Martin Gardner** » Mon Mar 02, 2009 4:13 pm

Self-explanatory.

Edit: OK as an Octochamp, if he becomes one.

Gary Male · Post by **Gary Male** » Mon Mar 02, 2009 4:14 pm

Over how many games? During Octochamp run? In the whole series? In one game? WE NEED AN EXPLANATION!

Charlie Reams · Post by **Charlie Reams** » Mon Mar 02, 2009 4:17 pm

Maybe a better poll would be "Will Martin Gardner post at least 900 topics with spoilers in the title"? Only 899 to go!

Joseph Bolas · Post by **Joseph Bolas** » Mon Mar 02, 2009 4:22 pm

Gary Male wrote:Over how many games? During Octochamp run? In the whole series? In one game? WE NEED AN EXPLANATION!

I would assume it meant his Octochamp run. I think it's possible but you never know.

Jojo Apollo · Post by **Jojo Apollo** » Mon Mar 02, 2009 4:24 pm

Yeah I reckon he will, what is the current record?

Charlie Reams · Post by **Charlie Reams** » Mon Mar 02, 2009 4:28 pm

Jojo Apollo wrote:Yeah I reckon he will, what is the current record?

http://www.apterous.org/cdb/octochamps.php

Matt Morrison · Post by **Matt Morrison** » Mon Mar 02, 2009 4:35 pm

If I'm not mistaken, a 900 point was a weird screw fitting I remember vaguely from woodwork at school.

Martin Gardner · Post by **Martin Gardner** » Mon Mar 02, 2009 4:36 pm

Charlie Reams wrote:Maybe a better poll would be "Will Martin Gardner post at least 900 topics with spoilers in the title"? Only 899 to go!

Don't tell me I posted a spoiler on the spoilers forum?

Jojo Apollo · Post by **Jojo Apollo** » Mon Mar 02, 2009 4:37 pm

Charlie Reams wrote:
Jojo Apollo wrote:Yeah I reckon he will, what is the current record?
http://www.apterous.org/cdb/octochamps.php

Cheers Charlie, that 924 is a heck of a difficult target to beat. Will be interesting to see how close Kirk gets to it.

Charlie Reams · Post by **Charlie Reams** » Mon Mar 02, 2009 4:39 pm

Martin Gardner wrote:
Charlie Reams wrote:Maybe a better poll would be "Will Martin Gardner post at least 900 topics with spoilers in the title"? Only 899 to go!
Don't tell me I posted a spoiler on the spoilers forum?

You put it in the title, so that anyone who reads View Active Topics (i.e. anyone sensible) gets totally spoilered.

Julie T · Post by **Julie T** » Mon Mar 02, 2009 5:06 pm

Charlie Reams wrote:
Martin Gardner wrote:
Charlie Reams wrote:Maybe a better poll would be "Will Martin Gardner post at least 900 topics with spoilers in the title"? Only 899 to go!
Don't tell me I posted a spoiler on the spoilers forum?
You put it in the title, so that anyone who reads View Active Topics (i.e. anyone sensible) gets totally spoilered.

Well, normally I complain about this sort of thing, but enough people have already hinted at it IMHO. Bit difficult to keep quiet about 'our Kirk' being on the show.
In particular, although I haven't clicked on the thread, the fact that Kai has already started a spoiler thread for Wednesday 11th March speaks volumes.
I wouldn't worry about it, Martin.

Charlie Reams · Post by **Charlie Reams** » Mon Mar 02, 2009 5:13 pm

Julie T wrote: Well, normally I complain about this sort of thing, but enough people have already hinted at it IMHO. Bit difficult to keep quiet about 'our Kirk' being on the show.
In particular, although I haven't clicked on the thread, the fact that Kai has already started a spoiler thread for Wednesday 11th March speaks volumes.
I wouldn't worry about it, Martin.

I think you're under the impression that I was complaining that Martin had mentioned that Kirk is on today, which is not a spoiler. But if you start a "will he make 900?" topic after the first episode is transmitted, it spoils that episode for anyone who hasn't seen it yet.

Adam Dexter · Post by **Adam Dexter** » Mon Mar 02, 2009 5:36 pm

Charlie Reams wrote:
Julie T wrote: Well, normally I complain about this sort of thing, but enough people have already hinted at it IMHO. Bit difficult to keep quiet about 'our Kirk' being on the show.
In particular, although I haven't clicked on the thread, the fact that Kai has already started a spoiler thread for Wednesday 11th March speaks volumes.
I wouldn't worry about it, Martin.
I think you're under the impression that I was complaining that Martin had mentioned that Kirk is on today, which is not a spoiler. But if you start a "will he make 900?" topic after the first episode is transmitted, it spoils that episode for anyone who hasn't seen it yet.

Hear hear. I watched it on C4+1, and foolishly came on here @ 4:15pm... BIG MISTAKE!

Jon O'Neill · Post by **Jon O'Neill** » Mon Mar 02, 2009 6:38 pm

Charlie Reams wrote:
Julie T wrote: Well, normally I complain about this sort of thing, but enough people have already hinted at it IMHO. Bit difficult to keep quiet about 'our Kirk' being on the show.
In particular, although I haven't clicked on the thread, the fact that Kai has already started a spoiler thread for Wednesday 11th March speaks volumes.
I wouldn't worry about it, Martin.
I think you're under the impression that I was complaining that Martin had mentioned that Kirk is on today, which is not a spoiler. But if you start a "will he make 900?" topic after the first episode is transmitted, it spoils that episode for anyone who hasn't seen it yet.

I think all 8 games have been spoiled since Kirk got his recording date.

Julie T · Post by **Julie T** » Mon Mar 02, 2009 7:16 pm

Charlie Reams wrote:
Julie T wrote: Well, normally I complain about this sort of thing, but enough people have already hinted at it IMHO. Bit difficult to keep quiet about 'our Kirk' being on the show.
In particular, although I haven't clicked on the thread, the fact that Kai has already started a spoiler thread for Wednesday 11th March speaks volumes.
I wouldn't worry about it, Martin.
I think you're under the impression that I was complaining that Martin had mentioned that Kirk is on today, which is not a spoiler. But if you start a "will he make 900?" topic after the first episode is transmitted, it spoils that episode for anyone who hasn't seen it yet.

I thought you meant that if he's starting a poll like this, he's assuming that Kirk becomes an octochamp in the first place, just wondering what his total points will be.
Although I didn't think you were making a huge issue anyway, just pointing it out.

Martin Gardner · Post by **Martin Gardner** » Mon Mar 02, 2009 8:17 pm

Charlie Reams wrote:
Julie T wrote: Well, normally I complain about this sort of thing, but enough people have already hinted at it IMHO. Bit difficult to keep quiet about 'our Kirk' being on the show.
In particular, although I haven't clicked on the thread, the fact that Kai has already started a spoiler thread for Wednesday 11th March speaks volumes.
I wouldn't worry about it, Martin.
I think you're under the impression that I was complaining that Martin had mentioned that Kirk is on today, which is not a spoiler. But if you start a "will he make 900?" topic after the first episode is transmitted, it spoils that episode for anyone who hasn't seen it yet.

Oh I dunno, I think you have to click on the topic to see when it was posted, so people can't really assume that it was started after Kirk's game unless they click on it. Am I right? Probably not lol.

Michael Wallace · Post by **Michael Wallace** » Mon Mar 02, 2009 8:21 pm

Martin Gardner wrote:Oh I dunno, I think you have to click on the topic to see when it was posted, so people can't really assume that it was started after Kirk's game unless they click on it. Am I right? Probably not lol.

Nope. I saw this thread start, saw that it was at 4.13pm, and drew the obvious conclusion. It made me

Paul Howe · Post by **Paul Howe** » Mon Mar 02, 2009 9:59 pm

My prediction is 924 points

I hope he gets a shot at the 146, but fear the present shuffling method may conspire against him. I'm rooting for a perfect game though.

JimBentley · Post by **JimBentley** » Mon Mar 02, 2009 10:33 pm

Paul Howe wrote:My prediction is 924 points

I hope he gets a shot at the 146, but fear the present shuffling method may conspire against him. I'm rooting for a perfect game though.

I think Paul's going to be quite close. The average max this series has been about 122, and even factoring in Kirk's good vowel/consonant picks at the goaty end of the picking, I can't see that being raised much. Given that he will inevitably miss a few things, I'll go for 914, but obviously I hope it's a lot higher.

Julie T · Post by **Julie T** » Tue Mar 03, 2009 12:19 pm

Paul Howe wrote:
I hope he gets a shot at the 146, but fear the present shuffling method may conspire against him. I'm rooting for a perfect game though.

Has a perfect max game ever happened on the show? Would be fantastic either way, if Kirk did this.

Michael Wallace · Post by **Michael Wallace** » Tue Mar 03, 2009 12:28 pm

Julie T wrote:Has a perfect max game ever happened on the show? Would be fantastic either way, if Kirk did this.

The mighty Beevers managed 120/121, but no max (yet...).

Gary Male · Post by **Gary Male** » Tue Mar 03, 2009 2:58 pm

Joseph Bolas wrote:
Gary Male wrote:Over how many games? During Octochamp run? In the whole series? In one game? WE NEED AN EXPLANATION!
I would assume it meant his Octochamp run. I think it's possible but you never know.

bangs head against desk until blood and poo comes out

Matt Morrison · Post by **Matt Morrison** » Tue Mar 03, 2009 3:01 pm

Gary Male wrote:bangs head against desk until blood and poo comes out

There's a distinct possibility you need to see a doctor.

Keith Bevins · Post by **Keith Bevins** » Tue Mar 03, 2009 9:15 pm

Sorry kirk i voted no (because Ryan told me to). I am going for 875. Ryan still says you're a pro though

Martin Bishop · Post by **Martin Bishop** » Tue Mar 03, 2009 9:39 pm

Charlie Reams wrote:
Jojo Apollo wrote:Yeah I reckon he will, what is the current record?
http://www.apterous.org/cdb/octochamps.php

Any chance you could add me to the list?

Kirk Bevins · Post by **Kirk Bevins** » Tue Mar 03, 2009 11:20 pm

Keith Bevins wrote:Sorry kirk i voted no (because Ryan told me to). I am going for 875. Ryan still says you're a pro though

Wow, my dad and brother have no confidence in me. Thanks guys.

Paul Howe · Post by **Paul Howe** » Thu Mar 05, 2009 7:49 pm

I've been indulging in some amateur statistography by compiling 4 game scores for some titans of the past (score for entire octo run in brackets)

Kirkules 480 (???) or maybe even (????)
Julian Fell 462 (924)
Craig Beevers 443 (907)
Conor Travers 423 (890)
David O'Donnell 416 (880)

Looking promising for Kirk so far, but the others all had a stronger second half than first, Julian rounding things off with a 138. Realistically you'd guess that Kirk's first half will be his strongest as he's had quite a few juicy 9s served up, so the others should come back a bit. Looking very good for the 900 though and I reckon my original prediction of 924 is still going to be pretty close.

Martin Gardner · Post by **Martin Gardner** » Thu Mar 05, 2009 9:03 pm

Paul Howe wrote:I've been indulging in some amateur statistography by compiling 4 game scores for some titans of the past (score for entire octo run in brackets)

Kirkules 480 (???) or maybe even (????)
Julian Fell 462 (924)
Craig Beevers 443 (907)
Conor Travers 423 (890)
David O'Donnell 416 (880)

Looking promising for Kirk so far, but the others all had a stronger second half than first, Julian rounding things off with a 138. Realistically you'd guess that Kirk's first half will be his strongest as he's had quite a few juicy 9s served up, so the others should come back a bit. Looking very good for the 900 though and I reckon my original prediction of 924 is still going to be pretty close.

Interestingly, Stewart Holden had 430 points after 4 games. He also had 791 points after 7 games, which is more than Julian Fell, but in game 8 Fell got 138 and Holden got 79.

Keith Bevins · Post by **Keith Bevins** » Thu Mar 05, 2009 9:17 pm

Can i change my mind? my 875 is approx 109 average which i thought about right after 2 games and now it seems a low total but can the 9's keep coming? I hope you prove me wrong kirk. In any case I am one very proud dad. (Eating humble pie but like i said before my hat is safe

)

Scott Bagnall · Post by **Scott Bagnall** » Fri Mar 06, 2009 2:44 pm

I'm going to make the assumption that he will.

Charlie Reams · Post by **Charlie Reams** » Fri Mar 06, 2009 2:46 pm

Scott Bagnall wrote:I'm going to make the assumption that he will.

Oooh, he won't like that.

Martin Gardner · Post by **Martin Gardner** » Tue Mar 17, 2009 10:08 pm

Win!!!!

JimBentley · Post by **JimBentley** » Tue Mar 17, 2009 10:18 pm

Paul Howe wrote:My prediction is 924 points

Paul couldn't have been much more spot-on. One point out.

With precognitive powers such as these, I can only conclude that he is a witch. Burn him!

Paul Howe · Post by **Paul Howe** » Wed Mar 18, 2009 12:13 am

JimBentley wrote:
Paul Howe wrote:My prediction is 924 points
Paul couldn't have been much more spot-on. One point out.

With precognitive powers such as these, I can only conclude that he is a witch. Burn him!

Am I alone in thinking this prediction was more impressive than the achivement itself?

I've always thought of witch burning as a horrible reminder of how easy it is to translate ignorance and fear into barbarism. But recent forum events have convinced me its an absolutely necessary practice, because if you chop em in half, you get two witches.

Keith Bevins · Post by **Keith Bevins** » Fri Mar 20, 2009 8:51 pm

Pass the humble pie. I should never have doubted him should I.
I did tell him I would eat my hat if he didn't become an octochamp though so i must have had some faith in him. (I don't like hats they get stuck in my throat)

Kirk Bevins · Post by **Kirk Bevins** » Fri Mar 20, 2009 8:52 pm

Keith Bevins wrote:Pass the humble pie. I should never have doubted him should I.
I did tell him I would eat my hat if he didn't become an octochamp though so i must have had some faith in him. (I don't like hats they get stuck in my throat)

Yeah. Thanks to all those people that did have faith in me to break the 900 barrier.

Kai Laddiman · Post by **Kai Laddiman** » Thu Apr 02, 2009 8:00 pm

Didn't know where to put this, so I just decided to plonk it here.

I've been doing some statistics for the current series and I have worked out that (shock horror!) Kirk had the highest percentage of raw max (ie. as if it was flat scoring) of anyone in this series, and that the Zussinator had the 3rd-highest. Anybody (who hasn't foed me) like to hazard a guess as to who is in at No. 2?*

*I would be grateful if you answered. Or at least tried to answer.

Neil Zussman · Post by **Neil Zussman** » Sun Apr 05, 2009 9:07 pm

Kai Laddiman wrote:Didn't know where to put this, so I just decided to plonk it here.

I've been doing some statistics for the current series and I have worked out that (shock horror!) Kirk had the highest percentage of raw max (ie. as if it was flat scoring) of anyone in this series, and that the Zussinator had the 3rd-highest. Anybody (who hasn't foed me) like to hazard a guess as to who is in at No. 2?*

*I would be grateful if you answered. Or at least tried to answer.

So with flat scoring, if I declare 5 and my opponent gets a 6, I still get 5 points, right? Considering the fact that I already have 78.9%, and I failed to score in a heck of a lot of rounds (or at least it seems like it- even the guy who scored the lowest of all my opponents beat me in one round

), I'm a bit surprised, and disappointed to still only be third in this series. Are you sure you worked it out right Kai?

Anyway, to answer the question: I don't reckon you'd be asking if it wasn't someone who was registered on this forum. So I'll guess at Kate Richardson. Amirite?

Howard Somerset · Post by **Howard Somerset** » Sun Apr 05, 2009 9:31 pm

I'm probably completely wrong, but I'm going to go with Anita Fairhurst, partially on the grounds that she's the highest scoring loser to an octochamp.

Kai Laddiman · Post by **Kai Laddiman** » Sun Apr 05, 2009 10:38 pm

Howard Somerset wrote:I'm probably completely wrong, but I'm going to go with Anita Fairhurst, partially on the grounds that she's the highest scoring loser to an octochamp.

Congratulations, Howard, go and buy yourself a VFSMB!

Howard Somerset · Post by **Howard Somerset** » Sun Apr 05, 2009 11:08 pm

Kai Laddiman wrote:
Howard Somerset wrote:I'm probably completely wrong, but I'm going to go with Anita Fairhurst, partially on the grounds that she's the highest scoring loser to an octochamp.
Congratulations, Howard, go and buy yourself a VFSMB!

Wish I knew what a VFSMB was. Just tried Googling it, and am none the wiser.

Kirk Bevins · Post by **Kirk Bevins** » Sun Apr 05, 2009 11:16 pm

Howard Somerset wrote: Wish I knew what a VFSMB was. Just tried Googling it, and am none the wiser.

Virtual Fun Size Mars Bar, or a Very Fine Sexy Manchester Babe. Your choice.

Howard Somerset · Post by **Howard Somerset** » Mon Apr 06, 2009 6:24 am

Kirk Bevins wrote:
Howard Somerset wrote: Wish I knew what a VFSMB was. Just tried Googling it, and am none the wiser.
Virtual Fun Size Mars Bar, or a Very Fine Sexy Manchester Babe. Your choice.

I can only afford one of those, so the choice is simple. Thanks.

Kai Laddiman · Post by **Kai Laddiman** » Mon Apr 06, 2009 9:29 am

Howard Somerset wrote:
Kirk Bevins wrote:
Howard Somerset wrote: Wish I knew what a VFSMB was. Just tried Googling it, and am none the wiser.
Virtual Fun Size Mars Bar, or a Very Fine Sexy Manchester Babe. Your choice.
I can only afford one of those, so the choice is simple. Thanks.

Just send me a pic of her and I'll be satisfied

Phil Reynolds · Post by **Phil Reynolds** » Mon Apr 06, 2009 10:36 am

Howard Somerset wrote:Wish I knew what a VFSMB was. Just tried Googling it, and am none the wiser.

Do pay attention at the back.

Kai is playing a bit fast and loose with the term, it must be said, since a VFSMB by definition cannot be bought. I'm not even sure if you can buy an FSMB, not one of them on its own, at least not from conventional retail outlets. You might have to settle for a plain old non-virtual full size MB.