Early this year, Apple launched their new iSolver, a device capable of solving any QuizWalk clue.

We managed to get our hands on one to test it out. We were disappointed. Although it looked slick and shiny, and had the classic Apple feel, its performance left a lot to be desired.We tried to get it to solve several different QuizWalk clues, but for each one, it gave the answer as “Holly”.

QUIZZICALRAMBLINGS NEW EDITION - APRIL 2016

Robert Collini here, your new QuizWalk archivist. Well, not really off to a good start by the looks of it, having just written a sentence without a verb.

From deep within the dusty basement of the Archives, I thought that it was about time that we resurrected the Quizzical Ramblings magazine that used to be a rare feature of the John Cooper QuizWalks.

By sniffing out some good QuizWalk stories and hopefully with some help from you, I intend to issue new Ramblings from time to time.

“Why?” I hear you shouting from the back. Well, why not? It gives us a chance to collect some QuizWalk chit chat and gossip, and have a little fun at ourselves along the way.

So, just what’s been happening, and more important, what have you been missing?

I have been preparing a searchabledatabase of all the QuizWalks that have been held since the very first QuizWalk. Fortunately for us, Les Bradbury did a super job of keeping records. For many years, he typed out his own copies of the Question sheets and answers, with the results of each walk.

As far back in time as the early 1980s, the records are almost complete.

As we delve back further from the 1970s to the late 1950s, the records start to become more fragmented. Results of many of the walks are missing, presumed lost. Where some of the results are available, walkers’ full names are not given, leaving us to guess who John 1, John 2 and John 3 were. Some walks merely give the town as the Starting Location, but what with road changes and land development, it is very difficult to determine the precise Starting

Location. Educated guesses have to be made from the route directions. Also, most of the walks recorded then do not give the walk distance.

At the start of the 2016 season, we have records of 547 walks. Of these, 5 walks appear to have taken place as some of the clues have been answered, but there are no walk details: no date (apart from assuming the year), no location and no organiser.The route directions are also missing, else it might have been possible to work out the start location from them.

It’s a slow and challenging process, butI am carefully piecing together the QuizWalks of old. There is always the chance that more archive material is still out there, so if you have anything relating to past QuizWalks, please get in touch.

You never know. You just might have one of the missing pieces.

NEW RAMBLINGS CELEBRITY QUIZWALKERSBoris Johnson finds clue on brickLast season, we welcomed two

celebrities keen to quizwalk alongside us.

Boris Johnson, (right) was elated when he found an elusive clue on a brick. The brick was at the bottom of a large pile, so he had to clear away several hundred of them to get to it. A disgruntled houseowner shouted from his window: “Oi mate! Gimme my f***ing brick back!” but Boris quickly jumped on his bike and sped off. Back at the pub, Boris commented:

“What a humungously spiffing day out I had. Can’t wait for the next QuizWalk.”

In August, we were delighted to be joined by the President Of The United States, Barack Obama (above). The Secret Service

had informed him that two years ago his name was used in one of our clues (‘Farmer Obama’) and he was intrigued to discover the agricultural connection.

At the start of Robert Whale’s QuizWalk, President Obama treated all of us to a spectacular landing of Marine One in the pub car park, but then went on to score only 11 correct answers.

He immediately fired Admiral Michael Rogers, Director of the National Security Agency on the grounds that he was supposed to know everything.

Since the walk, President Obama has occasionally picked up the

Question sheet, but to this day still cannot figure out how Robert Whale constructed his clues.

POTUS struggles to see where he went wrong in Robert Whale’s recent walk

There is no question that QuizWalks atttract a wide range of people who take part for all different sorts of reasons.

However, it would appear that QuizWalks also attract particular types of walkers with different characteristics and personalities.

In a recent study by the Quizology Faculty at Cambridge University, Professor Colin Troliber successfully identified seven types of quizwalker.

See if you are among them:)

The StrollerThe Stroller just loves walking along the route, seeing the views and enjoying the sunshine with not a care in the world. Now and then, the Stroller has a go at a few clues, but will give up if they cannot solve them in 5 seconds flat. At the end of the walk, the Stroller is one of the few quizwalkers who always goes home happy.

The ScribblerThe Scribbler writes down everything they see, and that means everything. House names, padlock names, telephone pole numbers – nothing gets left out. TheScribbler usually does not solve all the clues, but hopes to blag a correct answer when being marked simply by reading through everything they have written down.

The DrinkerThe Drinker arrives for the QuizWalk in plenty of time to get a few pints down before the start. Once they have their Question Sheet, and see the Starter Clues, they decide to have another pint before tackling them. During the walk, their brains get a little fuzzy so they keep an eye out for nearby refreshment. If they miss a few clues, no problem. As soon as they get back to the pub, another round of drinks helps jog the memory.

The AficionadoThe Aficionado takes part very regularly, but rarely does well. That does not bother them. They have all the necessary gear: expedition quality boots, walking stick, compass, wilderness survival kit... If you get paired with them on a walk, they will recount previous walks and their favourite clues. They mean well, but do tend to distract you from solving clues.

The SchemerThe Schemer can be crafty. They have an above-average solving ability, and have one goal in mind: to win the League or the Handicap. If they win the first 3 or 4 walks of the season, they concentrate on doing well in the rest of the walks to win the League. However, if they start off badly, then they keep their scores low on purpose to drop their handicap. On the Handicap Walk next season, out of the blue they score 25 out of 25, and win the Handicap not by a nose but by several lengths.

The Spare WheelThe Spare Wheel is similar to the Stroller, except they often turn up for walks alone and end up joining different teams on different walks. The Spare Wheel should never be considered a hindrance to a team for they can often be an invaluable font of knowledge just when you need it. Furthermore, by having walked with so many different teams, they have insight into how all the other QuizWalk teams operate.

The PredictorLastly, the Predictor. They are keen quizwalkers who like to ‘predict’ the answer to a clue well before their team actually find it. Surprisingly, the Predictor usually does very well. But when it goes wrong, it goes horribly wrong. They can be so sure that the next answer is ‘Master padlock’ that they will go back and forth along the route for at least 30 minutes trying to find it. They do eventually find the correct answer, but will moan about how the answer should really have been ‘Master padlock’.

QUIZ TECH WHAT KIND OF QUIZWALKER ARE YOU?

ANCIENT QUIZWALK FLYER FOUND !

An amazing discovery was made recently in a secret chamber hidden deep within the Great Pyramid of Giza, Egypt.

It now appears that we were not the first quizwalkers after all.

Apparently, a number of Ancient Egyptian pharaohs had a passion for quizwalks while they waited for their luxury two-up two-down pyramids to be built.A team of archaeologists discovered what they believe to be the earliest example of a QuizWalk flyer.

The hieroglyphics read:

Nebemakhet and Rahotep present “The Sharuna Sandal Slap”

On the second day of the fourth moon, meet at The Heron and Sardine when the sun is at its highest in the sky.

This desert inn serves reasonably priced traditional meals.

The quail with figs on a bed of lentils is the house speciality.

Dogs welcome.Free chariot parking.

The walk is 10,000 cubits long, over sand dunes. Not buggy friendly.

Bring your own stone tablet to engrave your answers. Please mark unknown answers with an ‘X’.

There is a lot of wildlife to hunt along the route so bring plenty of spears.

The results will be chipped out as soon as possible after the Walk.

This discovery sparked controversy amongst the QuizWalk academicians. Some instantly dismissed the find as a fake, and the archaeologists involved as charlatans while others fully endorsed this exciting development in QuizWalk history, and called for further studies to be made.

OUR RATINGBATTERY LIFE14 minutes

TITBITSThey show us the way today as they have done for decades. Where would we be

without signposts?Such a familiar sight in the country, and often fodder forQuizWalk clues when there is nothing else around. Yet how often do we actually stop to look carefully at them?

They come in all shapes and sizes. Many of them are now collapsing and need urgent care.

So, on your next QuizWalk, if you see a signpost, please stop and give it a hug.Signposts need some loving too.

WEBSITEA new QuizWalk website is in the pipeline. Construction is still in the early stages, so it might be some time before it is launched.

It will have a very modern feel, and will be fully compatible with every device, especially as more and more of you are now using smartphones.

LATERAL THINKINGTo get your brains into QuizWalking gear, have a go at this little puzzle.

A woman heard a piece of music that she recognised. She took a gun and shot a man dead. Explain.

Clue: She did not know the man.Clue: She was not charged with murder.

TAKING A LOOK ON THE LIGHTER SIDE OF QUIZWALKS

QUIZZICALRAMBLINGS NEW EDITION - APRIL 2016

When you are QuizWalking through the woods and looking for clues, it is sometimes easy to forget that the locals are also keeping an eye on you!

In Chris Cooper’s great photo below, a sly young fox surveils the QuizWalkers pass-ing his patch.

KEEP ‘EM PEELED MOCK THE WALKEvery year, we calculate the Handicaps based on each walker’s performance from the previous season. But just how are these ratings calculated?

We asked mathematician and TV host Dara O’Briain, to explain the maths, and show us the formula.

“Well, first of allyou take the number of organisers available, o, and factor this with the number of walks that were actually held, N.

Then we divide this by the product of the number of clues the walker solved indi-vidually, i, less the square of the number of clues the walker did not solve individu-ally, and the energy E spent by the walker to solve the clues, multiplied by a, the amount of pens the walker used through-out the whole QuizWalk season.

So, writing the whole formula for calculating the Handicap, we get:

H =

TAKING A LOOK ON THE LIGHTER SIDE OF QUIZWALKS

Still puzzling over the Lateral Thinking problem on page 1?OK, here are a few more clues for you.

Clue: Only the woman and the man were present when the shooting happened.

Clue: It was dark when it happened.

You should have enough clues now to explain what happened.

(You can ask more questions by emailing me at robert@collini.co.uk. I will only answer Yes, No or Irrelevant)

LATERAL THINKING

SIGN OF THE TIMES

N(o)i-d2(Ea)

POETRY CORNER Broken bridge

Obrokenbridge,myheartdoesweep Nopathtospanthewaterydeep. Woodsooldandnowforgotten Agehasrenderedyouhalf-rotten.

Walkersfromallsortsofplaces Whooncecrossedyouwithsmilingfaces Andstoppedtoeatsomefruityjellies... ThankGodtodayI’vegotmywellies.

EOQRThat’s it for this New Edition of Quizzical Ramblings. We hope you’ve enjoyed it.

If you have any articles, amusing stories, photos or any QuizWalk related material you would like to add for the next edition, don’t be shy. Please get in touch.

It will be good to hear from you.

Email: robert@collini.co.uk

QUIZWALKS: THE FUTUREThe first John Cooper QuizWalk took place on 29 September 1957. It was called a Treasure Hunt - the name QuizWalk was adopted at the start of 1979.

This year will be our 59th anniversary, and it is remarkable to think that with so much that has changed around us over these years, the QuizWalks are still going strong.

In fact, they are gaining momentum. In the last 10 years, the average number of walkers attending per season has increased. Our seasonal average is now 25 walkers per walk, and occasionally on some walks we have well over 40.

So what do the next 10 years look like for QuizWalks, and how might they change?

Personally, I see the QuizWalk future as bright and sunny, with just the odd rain-cloud or two.

Certainly, I hope to see the number of walkers taking part continue to rise. I don’t think it will be long before we have our first 100-walker QuizWalk, even though that will lead to us having two minor problems on our hands.

The first problem is with the marking after the walk. If you allow say 12 minutes per team to be marked, then 10 teams can be marked in 2 hours, spread over the time between first team and the last team to return to the start.

As more teams taking part, the organisers will have to find a way to speed up this process. Imagine 25 teams taking part. That equals 5 hours of marking!

A new marking process may need to be considered, as walkers cannot be expected to remain waiting for very long after they return.

The second problem caused by increased numbers of walkers is the inevitable bunching of teams that will occur along the route. This already happens from time to time, but with more walkers it may

begin to cause problems. There are, of course, several possible solutions to these problems, and I am sure that we will find good ways of dealing with them.

Then we have technology. More and more walkers now have smartphones, with capabilities the pioneer QuizWalkers could barely imagine.

Technology can give us many new and exciting ways to interact with QuizWalks, opening new doors and creating new pos-sibilities.

However, the younger walkers currently taking part and the younger walkers yet to join QuizWalks are becoming so dependent on access to the Internet that we need to ensure future QuizWalks are not rendered less of a challenge because of technology.

A prime consideration is the use of general knowledge in the clues. I think it should be used as sparingly as possible, else the QuizWalks risk become just like walking Pub Quizzes.

And we know QuizWalks are far better than that.

Apart from being out and about in the fresh air, QuizWalks are about discovery and finding things. As much as possible, the clues should be constructed on what is seen on the route. The challenge then is to use one’s power of careful observation and deduction to answer the clue by using one’s brain, and not looking it up on Google.

Despite these potential little ‘rainclouds’, there are many good things in store for future QuizWalks.

Andrew, Chris and I have established a reputation now for having a new theme in our QuizWalks each season.

These themes add a little something extra to the QuizWalk, and many walkers have told us how much they enjoy them.

(We have plenty more ideas, so we are not going to run out of them!)It would be great to see a few more of the current organisers introduce themes and new ideas and elements into their walks.

Perhaps you have an idea for a walk, a new element, something that would make the walk more interesting and more fun. If so, please let us know and we will do our best to introduce it into future walks.

Better still, why not organise a walk yourself? We have enough organisers at present, but we can always do with more.Naturally, the more organisers there are, the more varied the QuizWalks will be.It would be super to see some of you regular (or not so regular) walkers come forward to organise a walk. It is not as daunting as you might think, and often it is even more fun than taking part in walk themselves.

We’ll always be here to help and guide you so why noy give it a go? :)Once you organise one walk, you will want to organise more.

There is no doubt that in future years, many of our old tramping grounds and haunts will gradually disappear because of land redevelopment and the relentless expansion of towns, etc.

It may mean that we will need to set some walks further afield than we do at present but I see this as a good thing. There are many beautiful spots along the Kent and Sussex coasts that we have not quizwalked yet.

QuizWalks are and always have been unique. Though they will evolve in time, with new faces, new places and new ideas, I believe that they will always retain this uniqueness.

QuizWalks are for you to enjoy, just as much as we enjoy organising them for you.

Good times ahead.

On QuizWalks, we have always respected people’s property and privacy. We heed notices about private drives and land.

Here’s one golf course you definitely need to be extra careful on.

ANAGRAMATICSDon’t we just love anagrams?Anagrams have always been a popular way for cluesetters to make QuizWalks clues cryptic. There are, of course, good and poor anagrams.

A poor anagram is easily spotted because we see words which seem out of place and do not flow with the rest of the sentence. Example:

Red nag in a perilous state.Answer = Danger, anagram of ‘red nag’.

A good anagram, on the other hand, is neatly hidden in a sentence that flows and makes perfect sense.

Here are two examples.

1 Neatest gate design for house?

Answer = Estate agent. ‘Design’ is the tag word that suggests an anagram. ‘Neatest gate’ is the ana-gram, which binds well with ‘house’ and together they flow well with the answer, ‘estate agent’.

2A problem for the public if having priest round for dinner?

Answer= Private Fishing.This anagram is well hidden. The tag is ‘round’, the anagram is ‘if having priest’.The clue is constructed on two levels.Firstly, ‘dinner’ binds with the premise of the answer, fish, and secondly, because it is Private Fishing, then the public are not allowed to get the fish the dinner.