Sunday is Shrine Trot day at Bangor Raceway. But it’s not just another trotting race – it is one of the two divisions of the Billings Classic Amateur Driving Championship Series XVII.

Units from Anah Temple Shrine will kick off the busy afternoon schedule with a big Shrine parade. More than 25 Shrine units will parade around the historic Bass Park half-mile oval in the only full Anah Shrine parade in eastern Maine in 1998.

The Mini-Bikes, Go-Carts, Nascars, and 4X4 units will thrill race fans as they spin, speed, maneuver, and criss-cross the Bass Park oval, while bagpipers, brass bands, and several marching units parade the half-mile course at a slower pace. Anah Potentate Edward Pellon of Machias will step off the parade promptly at 12:45 p.m.

“Over the years, Anah Temple Shriners have entertained millions of people all across Maine and Canada. The Shriners are the kind of family entertainment Bangor Raceway likes to present to the public,” Fred Nichols, general manager of the raceway said.

Two trotting marks have been set at Bangor Raceway in the Shrine Trot. In the 1995 Shrine Trot, Cha Cha Laroo trotted a new mark in 2:01, and in the 1996 Shrine Trot, Corky’s Boy lowered the trotting mark by three-fifths of a second, winning in 2:00.2. The current trotting mark of 2:00 was established in 1997 by West Ridge Gossip.

Bangor Raceway will also feature the 3-year-old divisions of The Maine Standardbred Breeders Stakes on this weekend’s racing programs. Friday’s 10-dash race program features the 3-year-old trotters; Saturday’s 12-race program showcases the pacing fillies; and on Sunday’s 13-race card, the pacing colts and geldings will be featured.

In addition to the Shrine parade, for the first time in its history, Bangor Raceway will host two divisions of the Billings Classic Amateur Driving Championship Series XVII on Sunday. The CKG Billings is named for Cornelius Kingsley Garrison Billings, one of the greatest sportsmen in the true sense of the word and an “amateur” driver.

The Delvin Miller Amateur Drivers Association of Goshen, N.Y., sponsor of the Billings Classic, currently has a roster of 91 drivers who qualify for amateur status, including Malvern C. Burroughs, who won the 1997 Hambletonian with Malabar Man. Fourteen amateur drivers are scheduled to compete at Bangor Raceway on Sunday in The Billings. The first stop for the 1998 Billings Classic was at Monticello Raceway on May 17 and the last competition of the season will be featured at Pompano Park in Florida on Oct. 30, completing a tour of 25 different racetracks in 11 states and Canada.

The Billings Classic is open to drivers who qualify as an “amateur.” To meet the qualifications, he or she must be a member of the Delvin Miller ADA and be licensed by the USTA (or CTA) and local state racing commissions. All proceeds from The Billings are donated to the Harness Racing Museum in Goshen, N.Y. Last year, amateurs turned over more than $20,000 to the museum.

Dave Cochran of Old Orchard, a horse owner and amateur driver and vice president of The Billings Trotting Classic, will take a seat in the sulky and drive in Sunday’s amateur trot races. He put together the two divisions of The Billings Trotting utilizing local trotters in both divisions and has added some new outside trotting talent (see the starters in Saturday’s NEWS).

Joining Cochran as amateurs whose primary occupations, in many cases, seem somewhat far removed from competing on harness racing tracks. The other drivers are: Gerald Fielding, a ski shop owner at Holiday Mt., in Monticello, N.Y.; Michael Weber, a newspaper columnist and horse trainer from New Jersey; Thomas Stearns, a liquor store owner in New Jersey; David Cochran, a seminar speaker for telephone companies and vice president of the Billings; and Dr. Joseph Camerino, assistant superintendent of Morrisville College on harness racing, Morrisville, N.Y.

Also, Vladimir Melnichenko, also with Morrisville College and a winner of a division of the Billings at Scarborough Downs last month; Peter Gerry, an investment banker from New Jersey, with a trotting contender for this year’s Hambletonian; Tom Beckwith, an owner and trainer from Union; Joseph Faraldo, a New York attorney and president of the New York Standardbred Owners Association. Faraldo also was last year’s Billings champion and will represent the United States in Montreal later this summer against 20 of the world’s leading drivers.

Additionally on Sunday are: Ed Ryan, general manager of Freehold Raceway in New Jersey; Lon Frocione, a food distributor (Delly Boy chain) of New York; Christie Collins, a second trainer for Gary Messinger at Monticello, N.Y.; Elbridge “Ebby” Gerry Jr., a banker and president of the newly remodeled Harness Racing Museum of Goshen, N.Y.; and Lisa Andersson, a second trainer whose mother operates the off-track wagering facility in Brunswick.

The first division is scheduled as a non-betting race at the beginning of the Sunday afternoon program. The second division is carded as the fifth race (a betting event) and the winner of this division will receive the Shrine blanket from Potentate Pellon.

It all begins with the Shrine parade at 12:45 p.m.