I've covered just about every beat, from cops/courts to politics to, yes, even sports (nothing like brushing up on those cliches). Most of my work was the city/county government beats at daily newspapers in Mississippi, Louisiana, and Florida. My awards (we all get them after a while, even me) include:

Best Investigative Reporting for coverage of a boat selling operation by a prominent area businessman. Great scam...he sold the same yacht to numerous people. Fun side of this..I nailed his cousin (a sheriff) and another relative (tax collector) for other things while at the same paper. What a family. Mississippi Press Association

Best Spot News Coverage for coverage of a train that slammed into a bridge carrying rush hour traffic. Fun part was talking the cops into letting me near the crash site while looking for hazardous wastes thought to be on the train, and then me calling the story in on deadline. Louisiana Press Association

Best General News Story for a series of articles examining the economic and social impact of the mothballing of a nuclear power plant on a small Mississippi community. Mississippi Press Association

And some other stuff. Hell, I even received an award for a lucky photo I once snapped. Go figure.