Bangor, ME – Maine’s fabled agricultural fair circuit recently wrapped up its 2026 season with another successful harness race meet at the historic Fryeburg Fair, and as the mid-autumn foliage retains its vibrant hues, the horses readily moved back into commercial track form when Bangor Raceway kicked off its 11-day fall meeting on Wednesday (Oct. 14).
Kevin Switzer, Jr, fresh off a hard fought Fryeburg Fair driving title, picked up right where he left off at Bangor, slugging an opening day triple over the course of Wednesday’s nine-race program, starting off with an outstanding gate-to-wire effort with the promising 2-year-old filly, Kentuckysmokeshow.
A fresh edition to the Eric Bickmore/Maryann Tompkins roster, the freshman daughter of Captaintreacherous scored her second consecutive win, taking a new lifetime mark of 2:01 after valiantly taking air through an opening :29.2 panel.
After confidently riding point, the youngster, making only her third career appearance, diligently held off a determined late charge from the more experienced Dudes Pretty Chick (driven by Heath Campbell) to secure an encouraging 1/2-length margin at the wire, while returning a generous $5.20 win ticket.
Switzer continued to be the master of the front-end at Bangor on Wednesday, also scoring in pillar-to-post fashion with Orrsterror (1:59.4-$2.20), who raced confidently just like a 1-9 shot should, and Cool Your Heels (1:59.2, $6.20), who sprung a snappy :58.2 back-half at the competition after smartly crafting a deviously effective 1:01 opening circuit.
Racing will resume at Bangor Raceway on Saturday (Oct. 17) when the Queen City Oval plays host to the $400,000-plus Maine Sire Stakes 3-year-old finals. First post for the 12-race championship card will be at 2:45 p.m. (EDT), commencing with a non-wagering event for the $101,608 sophomore trotting colt final. The first of 11 wagering events, including the $20,000 final of the Fred Nichols Fall Series, will be at 3 p.m.
Racing will continue into the weekend at Bangor Raceway with the traditional Sunday (Oct. 18) matinee performance, scheduled this fall for an early 11:45 a.m. post time, and will proceed on a three-day per week schedule through Nov. 7.
For those not able to come to the track, wagering and live video for Bangor Raceway, as well as hundreds of harness and Thoroughbred racetracks across the world, is available on Hollywood Races at www.hollywoodraces.com.
For complete information regarding live racing, simulcast wagering, gaming, dining, and hotel accommodations at Bangor’s Hollywood Casino and Raceway, please visit the website at www.hollywoodcasinobangor.com.