"Taxi! Taxi!" by Marti Ronemus

In the "Did you know?" category: The 50,000 Manhattan Yellow Cab drivers each drive more than 70,000 miles. That's 3.5 billion miles! Yikes! Some other cab facts... there's a secret Panic Button that when pushed flashes amber lights and alerts police that the driver needs help. Also, the secret to summoning a cab isn't just waving your arms, it's making eye contact so the driver knows you aren't waving at a friend. And, try to look like a sober citizen. Drivers are not required to stop for you if you look "impaired."

Finally, a warning. Cabs are retired after three years and are either reduced to parts or sold. Cabbies' advice about buying one? Don't.

Today's challenge is advancing the auction. Should we pick up that passenger? Should we push our Panic Button? TBA.

Question 1

Your Hand
♠ K 6 5 4 3
♥ K Q 8
♦ Q 5
♣ Q 8 4

Q: 1 - South:

South	West	North	East
-	1♣	1♥	Pass
2♣	Pass	2♥	Pass
?

A: Pass: Our cuebid promises a minimum of 10 pts and three Hearts and that's what we've got. Our cuebid is forcing on PARD, not on us. Pard's minimum response should encourage us to pass. We don't envision game and we have nothing extra to offer.

Your result so far:

Open Question

Question 2

Your Hand
♠ 10 9 8 4 3
♥ 7 6
♦ A J 9
♣ K Q 4

Q: 2 - South:

South	West	North	East
-	1♥	Dbl	4♥
?

A: 4♠: East is very weak with at least five Hearts. Pard's got a singleton Heart. Pard also has four Spades. That means Pard's got eight cards in the minors. Your honors should all be working. Don't mess around, just flag down that taxi and get on with the job.

Your result so far:

Open Question

Question 3

Your Hand
♠ 6
♥ K 10 7
♦ K 10 9 4 3
♣ A Q 8 4

Q: 3 - South:

South	West	North	East
-	-	-	3♠
?

A: Pass: No cabs today. We can't double as we prefer to have four Hearts when we're so weak. We can't overcall 4♦. Really? With that suit? We have to pass and hope Pard has something to contribute for his share of the ride.

Your result so far:

Open Question

Question 4

Your Hand
♠ 9 8 7 6
♥ A K J 9 8 7
♦ A 2
♣ 2

Q: 4 -

South	West	North	East
-	-	-	3♠
?

A: 4♥: We can catch a cab even though it's raining. Pard is rated to hold no more than two Spades. We've got an independent Heart suit. If Pard can contribute one trick we've got this!

Your result so far:

Open Question

Question 5

Your Hand
♠ A 6 5 4 2
♥ Q 4
♦ K 8 4
♣ J 10 9

Q: 5 - South:

South	West	North	East
-	-	Pass	1♠
Pass	Pass	2♥	2♠
?

A: Pass: Raising Pard's Hearts isn't justified, so skip that one. What about No-trump? Pard's initial Pass warns us off that. A penalty double based on our Spades? Tempting, but we need to let this one go. Notice that Pard still has an opportunity to bid if he's determined.

And now our hand.

Your result so far:

Open Question

Play this Hand

Now that you've bid five hands, let's see how your play goes.

Overall Results

Your results: out of Average:

What next? You may enjoy playing our prepared hands series.
More informations on our website: www.VuBridge.com

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