quote:

Originally posted by Gummy:

Mind you I would like to use his method on here and get a knife and split the gizzards of some members.

That's very funny Gummy, I take it you've been watching Pirates Of the Caribbean?

Nope,I used to hang unruly members by the neck until dead but after seeing poor old Saddam go I am changing my method.

Epi, great to see a post from you after all this time.
Alf

anyone like to shed some light on just wtf this thread is on about

i started reading it but thought I'd slipped into a parallel universe

plain english would be nice...no guessing games or mystery knowledge please

Hi Ectoo

Quick summary for you:

1. A member has claimed to have identified VDW, who is still alive.

2. He shared this knowledge with a few, select members (JIB among them).

3. I think JIB thought he was doing people a favour by announcing it.

4. The news has been met with quite a variety of responses!

BC

thanks BC

just how does someone confirm that someone living in a house today is the same person that lived there 30 years ago...just how does anyone know which real address the letters came from anyway?...I can send a letter to someone and put my address as Buckingham Palace..it don't mean I really live there.

good God...there are some gullible souls around


is this April the first?

is it AlanB thats told you all this?...the guy with a couple of dozen identities on the net...mmmm

i'll have to bow out of this...it's seriously making my ribs ache laughin at it

carry on..ignore me..you will anyway


i hope them on betfair forum don't hear about this thread..omg

This message has been edited. Last edited by: ectoo,

Oh, you are awful. But I like you!!

don't be silly BC...even I don't like me



have a good new year

You have a good one too.

By the way, don't be daft. I think you're a good chap. And you know a heck of a lot more about this game than me, and most mb contributors for that matter.

Hello all, while I agree that the personal details of the person claimed to have been identified as VDW should not be published on the net may I ask what actual evidence has been used to establish his identity. I don't believe the disclosure of this information should compromise the either the claimants or VDW.

Personally I don't believe the fact, if true, that certain areas of his life have been embellished detracts from the core quality of his racing knowledge.

Thanks in advance

Whisper

The bloke involved is Nobby "vomitor" Clarke, he has lived in Market Harborough all his life. He is now 68.

He has been a tramp since the age of 25 after having lost all his money and belongings backing horses. He wrote to the Handicap Book after reading it whilst getting a warm in the local Library.

When AlanB caught up with him...he said "aw guv,I only wrote them letters to give mesen some self respect"...then proceeded to vomit all over Alan's best suit. He used VDW as the name because he didn't think letters signed Nobby "vomitor" Clarke would get printed. So that explains the name bit anyway

Nobby's choice of past races was completely random and he admits just backfitting them from pages from the Sporting Life he found each day in the bus shelter where he slept. He did say though that those selections that don't seem to follow his "VDW" rules were just mistakes on his behalf when he was totally pissed out of his brains.

When Alan told him people on the internet had made up rules and mysterious ways of explaining those selections/mistakes he just laughed and shook his head in total disbelief...then vomitted on Alan again.

Nobby just cannot believe that his letters have created such a cult following, he wanted to thank everyone involved in building up the legend all these years.

Seems a sad tale...

and before anyone questions the above

I received the information in a private, top secret email from Yik "flemmer" Harris who has known Nobby all his life...he confirmed every word

so that proves it's right doesn't it?

ectoo LOL

just how does someone confirm that someone living in a house today is the same person that lived there 30 years ago?

Ectoo,

If anyone is being gullible here it is you asking that question. Have you never heard of the electoral role and/or the land registry. Do you not realise it is easy to get copies of birth/marriage certificates through the internet for a very small fee?

I can send a letter to someone and put my address as Buckingham Palace..it don't mean I really live there.

That is of course correct but would you do that if you were expecting to receive replies, or payment for services rendered? Mr Peach said several times he paid VDW for writing some of the articles.

As said before I have seen the evidence and it stands up in every way. What I really don't understand is why I along with the others who have confirmed this evidence seem to be being branded as half wits who believe everything they are told. I have had my differences with JIB but I wouldn't think he is the sort to believe something without proof. Oldtimer is certainly nobodies fool. Whatever you think about me I don't think you could say I am easily swayed into other folks way of thinking.

Personally I think there are some questions to be asked, but I can see no real reason that Fulham should the one that is being asked. If he found the truth the question must be why didn't Mr Peach? Along with many other questions, one being why when he spoke to this "Dutchman" on the phone didn't the fact he didn't have an accent ring any bells?

Be Lucky

Since starting this thread I have followed its developement in the hope that besides throwing a new perspective about the subject, I would find members who were worthy of sharing the details of VDW's identity.

My first disappointment is that no one seems to understand that it is impossible to divorce the writings from the man. It is impossible to understand one without understanding the other. The circumstances of VDW are absolutely relevant to what he wrote. To declare that VDW's identity bears no importance to what he wrote is to declare that that a blind man can describe colour.

My second disappointment is that no one seems to be bothered that this 76 yo gentleman could be ruthlessly exposed to satisfy the morbid curiosity of those who, if they were true inheritors of a fortune would have a filial devotion to their benefactor. Is no one concerned that one of the weirdos who have stalked this subject over the last 6 years could find an outlet for the resentment for their useless existence?

No one has a 'right' to know VDW's identity.

It would appear that those that have had access to the information are worthy of the trust that Fulham has placed in them.

That is the essential something that should be considered by those that as yet do not have the complete story because without first reconciling one's position to one's behaviour it is impossible to be worthy of the trust that is necessary.

As JIB says, one cant divorce the writings from the man, and it has now been established that VDW was a fantasist, his writings were fantasies. I feel the remarks on the lines of 'who cares, the writings are still the same' miss the point. The writings mislead, for several reasons but mainly in the unrealistic strike rate and the claim of a consistently effective method of achieving that SR. A consequence is that VDW examples are not races to study because there is no reason to believe the horses were selected before running.
There's a class of problem described as NP-complete, such problems are very difficult because they have no solving algorithms, but their solutions, once known, are very easy to understand. Anyone with experience of VDW followers should see the parallel, it's easy to justify any winner after the race but unless that horse was selected before the race this justification is pretty much useless. So, in my opinion, VDW encourages a mistaken approach to the problem of discovering selections, besides which, Braddock includes all the sensible elements of VDW without the hysteria, so who needs VDW?

JIB

Since when did you or your confederates have the call on who is, and is not, 'worthy' ffs?
You are not some prophets, come down from the mountain to educate the great unwashed, just a group demonstrating the same 'dog in a manger' attitude that took them away from this board in the first place.
No one has to know this person's identity, or necessarily needs someone else's opinion on its validity but, if things are as you claim, then why must the evidence be dragged out morsel by morsel, except to maintain an illusory stance about the groups omnipotence in all things VDW.
If you don't want us to know, don't tell us, I can live with that, what I cannot do is accept that it is necessary to maintain this cloak and dagger boll*cks in response to some very simple questions.

is g hall living in argentina and wanted for crimes against the truth

it's been clear to the majority of punters for many years that the past examples were bollocks...but as some vdwers have decided to make a university course out of them and awarded guru status to those that are BEST at knowing how they worked..it's been impossible to get through to those fanatics

i can't see the past race gurus believing any of this...it means all the kidology they have used on themselves about knowing why X was a bet or not has been a total waste of effort

where's LEE?

he must be heartbroken

Ectoo,

Why would anybody be heartbroken? It doesn't change the selection process. The selections will only be seen as backfitting by those who can't see a common link between them. Personally I'm in no doubt that all the selections were found in the same way. Of course, that's only half the story. It's one thing to have a method of selection that throws up all the winners but to have any value we also have to know how many losers it will throw up. As, by and large, VDW only highlighted his winners we have to find the losers for ourselves.

That's the same with any method. I'm more than happy to show plenty of examples of winners beginning with the letter 'A'. Whether I post them before or after the race won't alter the fact that they begin with 'A'. Only a fool would accept that as a viable method without finding out how many losers begin with 'A' though

It's possible to have a method that throws up 99% winners and still go skint if you are daft enough to put all your bank on every selection. I don't see how these 'revelations' make any difference to the method.