The eighth weekend of Bangor Raceway’s 122nd harness racing season promises to be one of the most exciting in terms of crowd-pleasing quality as the Shriners take center stage at Bangor Historic Track.

Although racing started Friday night, the Anah Temple Shrine weekend officially kicks off with the start of the annual parade at noon Saturday near the Bass Park Grandstand.

“It’s basically the only chance each year for immediate area residents to see the full Anah Temple Shrine parade with the go-karts, bagpipers, miniature vehicles, band, singers, and mini-motorcycles,” said Fred Nichols, Bangor Raceway general manager. “It usually brings out a really big crowd. It’s a wonderful parade and it really makes for a family-type atmosphere.”

The weekend’s festivities conclude with the Shrine Trot, the 10th race in an 11-race program that starts at 1 p.m. Sunday. A five-horse field will contend for a $4,000 purse with the early favorite being Star’s Photo, driven by Bill Varney of Bangor. Star’s Photo, who will start from gate four, is the current Bangor Raceway trotting record holder with a time of 1 minute, 58.4 seconds set last summer.

The rest of the feature race field consists of Classic Andy with driver Dirk Duncan of Presque Isle (No. 3 gate), Sonic Scot driven by Hermon’s Wes Brown (2), Balanced Serenade with driver Don Richards of Yarmouth (1), and Highlander G with driver John Davidson of Saint John, New Brunswick (5).

Classic Andy appears to be the top challenger after having lost a lead over Star’s Photo down the stretch in a head-to-head finish earlier this month. The “dark horse” literally could be Balanced Serenade, which is fairly new to the Bangor race scene.

Other weekend highlights include a benefit race Sunday for the Susan G. Komen Breast Cancer Foundation and a benefit raffle.

Sunday is also Warren and Lil Strout Appreciation Day. The Bradley couple has put in many years of service at Bangor Raceway. Warren Strout was one of the more successful trainers in Bangor for decades and Lil ran Lil’s Lunch, a food wagon located near the paddock.

“He was a great trainer and Lil probably fed everyone out here more than once over the years,” said Nichols.

Sunday’s full day of events and races also includes the C.K. Billings Amateur Drivers Association Series race – the fourth race on Sunday’s schedule.

“These are amateur drivers from all over the country who race among themselves all season and congregate here once a year,” explained Nichols. “It’s a nationwide circuit and this is one of the middle stops on the tour. They’ll be in Scarborough the night before.”

Friday and Saturday’s races feature Maine Standardbred Breeders Association Stakes events. Saturday’s schedule features 3-year-old colt and filly trotters.

Saturday’s events also include the annual summer meeting and dinner of the Maine Standardbred Breeders and Owners Association at 3 and 5 p.m., respectively. The featured speaker is Jon Johnson, general manager of the Bangor Historic Track and gaming facility, who will provide updates on the status of the racino. Also, two MSBOA scholarships will be presented.