Length

President Barack Obama signed legislation last week to more than triple the number of Ameri-Corps members, from 75,000 to 250,000. Mr. Obama declared that the Edward M. Kennedy Serve America Act is about "connecting deeds to needs." Paying people on false pretenses to do unnecessary things is the soul of AmeriCorps. Since President Bill Clinton created this program in 1993, politicians have endlessly touted its recruits as volunteers toiling selflessly for the common good. But most AmeriCorps members go on to work for government agencies or nonprofit groups; their AmeriCorps gig is more of a career steppingstone than an act of financial sacrifice.

Eight horses started the 113th Maryland Hunt Cup on Saturday. Two of them finished. One by one, the 22 menacing fences picked off mounts and jockeys, most of whom had ridden the race before. In the end, though, it was a couple of Hunt Cup rookies who fought it out as Michele Marieschi, with George Hundt Jr. aboard, defeated Rosbrian by 4 1/2 lengths on an unseasonably hot afternoon in Glyndon. The race was won in 10 minutes, 7 seconds, well off the record of 8:25 3/5 set by Young Dubliner in 2002.

Timber racer Incomplete bided his time trailing the leaders for most of the 99th running of the My Lady's Manor steeplechase race Saturday in Monkton before finding another gear and running away from the rest of the 10-horse field to win by seven lengths. Incomplete, an 8-year-old bay, is 3-for-3 in National Steeplechase Association-sanctioned races since beginning his career over timber two years ago. "My horse has a great quarter-of-a-mile kick," said Incomplete jockey Charlie Fenwick III, "and he has enough tactical speed to put him wherever I want to put him, so that's what I did, and it worked out."

Well done, Well Armed. Stretching the lead with every stride over the final 600 yards, Well Armed ran away with the $6 million Dubai World Cup by a record 14 lengths Saturday in the United Arab Emirates. The 6-year-old gelding turned the final race at Nad al Sheba into one to remember and claimed the richest prize in horse racing. Next year, the track will be replaced by a $1.25 billion complex. "Last race at Nad Al Sheba, and we won it!" winning jockey Aaron Gryder said. Did they ever.

PHILADELPHIA - The World Series will go on. It just might take awhile. Major League Baseball postponed the already suspended Game 5 of the 2008 Series for another day because of more rain and wind here, pushing the first pitch of the bottom of the sixth inning until 8:37 tonight, weather permitting. According to weather.com, the chance of rain in Philadelphia dips to 30 percent around game time tonight - compared with 100 percent for much of yesterday - but temperatures will be in the low 40s with winds 10 mph or higher.

Get ready for a wave of annoying airline rules requiring you to stay at your destination a minimum number of days or over a Saturday night - if you want the cheapest tickets. The move is an effort to force business travelers, who usually need the most flexibility and want to be home on the weekends, to pay more for their flights. Airlines have increased restrictions on cheap fares by raising overnight requirements, increasing what had commonly been only a one-night stay requirement to two and three nights.

Identical twin sisters Chandra and Leigh Watson started singing together at age 9. By 16, they were learning how to play guitar and writing their own music. And a few years later, they moved to Los Angeles and joined the band Slydell. But it would be nearly 10 years before they started getting noticed for their tight harmonies. The twins toured and performed with Rilo Kiley's lead singer Jenny Lewis in 2006. And late last month, the Watson Twins released their debut full-length album Fire Songs.

Seeta Khadan-Newton was doing everything she could to get her daughter and grandson back. She contacted city police reporting the pair missing in April 2006. When they were found living with a little known ministry in East Baltimore, she sued for custody of the infant. While that case languished in Circuit Court she begged for help. "Please," she said in handwritten letter to a Circuit Court judge, "my grandson is now 18 months old and I fear for his and my daughter's safety. You see they are in a cult.

Because of an editing error, Sunday's article on the Maryland Hunt Cup ended in the middle of a sentence. Here is the complete article. There is little doubt among those affiliated with Maryland steeplechasing that Charles Fenwick III has the sport in his blood. His father, Charles Fenwick Jr., is a five-time winner of the Maryland Hunt Cup and his mother, Ann D. Stewart, won the race three times as a trainer. On Saturday, in the 112th running of the Maryland Hunt Cup, Charles Fenwick III added to the family's legacy by winning the $75,000 race in front of an announced 7,500.

Columbia Association board members have decided that their meetings effectively become closed anytime they stretch into the wee hours -- not to mention that the board doesn't make its best decisions at those hours. Last week, the board adopted the recommendation of its external relations committee that all Columbia Association and committee meeting agendas include a time duration for each agenda item and a precise overall adjournment time. The committee had recommended an ending time of 10 p.m., But the board decided to make it 11 p.m. It would take a two-thirds vote to extend the meeting beyond the established time.