Jacki Wachtel could have been content with winning Friday's Lutz Fourth of July race, but Wachtel, ever the competitor, felt compelled to swim, bike and run Saturday in the Crystal River Fourth of July Sprint Triathlon at Fort Island Gulf Beach as well. ...more

July 8, 2008

A Northwest Airlines flight from Detroit created a stir among passengers when it landed in Tampa on Sunday afternoon with a sizable dent in its nose. ...more

July 7, 2008

It used to be we would pull out of Tampa with a full tank and try to make it just across the Georgia border, where gas would be 20 or 30 cents cheaper. ...more

July 7, 2008

Scott Dixon's bid for a fourth straight victory on the road course at Watkins Glen ended Sunday with an uncharacteristic mistake that gave Ryan Hunter-Reay the opening he needed to earn his first IndyCar Series victory. ...more

July 7, 2008

As the United States of America marks another birthday, some might wonder what there is to celebrate about. Gas prices are at an all-time high. So are food prices, and prices of everything else. Monthly home mortgage payments are becoming impossible for many who have not lost their homes to foreclosure. ...more

July 7, 2008

LOS ANGELES - Will Smith's box-office superpowers remain intact. Smith's "Hancock" - the story of a boozing, foul-mouthed superhero who dresses like a street bum - led the Fourth of July weekend with a $66 million debut, according to studio estimates Sunday. ...more

July 6, 2008

We are living in a parallel universe. The media outlets are convinced that you cannot get enough of Barack Obama, who is here to restore the throne of Camelot, and his stodgier, less charismatic opponent John McCain. ...more

July 6, 2008

A Fourth of July fireworks shell misfired in a northern Iowa town, sending a fireball skidding down a street into a crowd of spectators and injuring 37 people, officials said Saturday. ...more

July 6, 2008

President Bush invoked the memory of Thomas Jefferson on Friday in welcoming new U.S. citizens at a naturalization ceremony at Monticello, saying, "I'll be proud to call you a fellow American." ...more

July 5, 2008

Joey Chestnut claimed the top spot at the annual hot dog eating contest in Coney Island on Friday after first tying with archrival Takeru Kobayashi in a 10-minute chow-down and then beating him in a five-dog eat-off. ...more

July 5, 2008