POULSBO — The sun might not shine on this afternoon’s 37th annual Viking Fest parade. But come rain, sleet or hail, the festival will go on.

Forecasters had been predicting partly cloudy skies today and sunshine tomorrow, but apparently Mother Nature has other ideas. Showers are back in the picture this weekend, while clouds are expected to remain through at least Tuesday.

Although the carnival, Viking Village and the myriad of other activities aren’t scheduled to begin until 9 a.m., the Poulsbo Noon Lions will already be cooking up breakfast at the Poulsbo Armory. The Lions’ 32nd annual pancake feed will go from 7 a.m. to 1 p.m. today and Sunday.

Runners will hit the city streets as the 27th annual Viking Fest Road Race takes its mark at 6th Avenue and Harrison Street. The 5-mile run will begin promptly at 9 a.m. with the 1-mile race set to begin five minutes later. Kids’ dashes will follow at 10:15 a.m. downtown. The road race awards ceremony is scheduled for 11:15 a.m. at Kvelstad Pavilion.

“We’re anticipating around 500 to 550 runners, which is what we normally have,” said Pat Hightower, Poulsbo Parks and Recreation administrative assistant.

Runners can register for the race from 7:30 a.m. to 8:45 a.m. today. The fee for the five-mile race is $15 and the one-mile race costs $7. Kid dashes fees are $2.

By 10 a.m., Viking Village and the carnival will welcome the throngs of visitors expected for this weekend’s activities. Both will remain open until 10 p.m.

At around 11 a.m., the tempting aromas from the numerous food vendors, bakeries and coffee shops downtown should offer something to please even the most finicky of festival-goers. The Sons of Norway will lead the way with its Scandinavian Luncheon, featuring open-faced sandwiches, split pea soup and a menagerie of baked goods. The luncheon will go from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m.

After the lunch hour, kids of all ages will begin lining Front Street for this year’s parade, which features 85 floats and will be led by Poulsbo RV spokesman Bruce King.

Being asked to be the grand marshal of this year’s parade came as surprise, King said.

“I’m pleased to be able to come and be part of the celebration,” he said.

While King said he has made the trek to Poulsbo a few times, this year will be the first time he’s experienced Viking Fest.

“This is my first adventure to Viking Fest but other people have told me it’s a lot of fun and is a really great time,” King said.

Randy Scott from 94.1 FM KMPS’ Ichabod Caine and the Waking Crew will be announcing the parade from one of the two announcing booths. Scott will also get a jump on tomorrow’s lutefisk eating contest as he is expected to sample the Norwegian speciality during his visit today.

While Scott is sampling the gastronomically challenging dish, the reigning lutefisk eating contest titleholder Charles Jensen will be preparing to take home his third straight victory as the competition is set to begin at 2 p.m. on Sunday at Kvelstad Pavilion.

Last year, Jensen downed five pounds of the lye-soaked delicacy to hold off a strong-willed challenge from veteran Eric Perkins, who won the contest in 2002.

Sunday will also bring a new wave to festival activities as Olympic Outdoor Center sponsors the first ever Viking Fest Kayak Races beginning at 10:30 a.m. on Liberty Bay. The event promises to be wet and wild fun.

“We’ll have two different divisions: corporate and family, and each of those will compete for first place in their division,” said John Kuntz, owner of the Olympic Outdoor Center.