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Dispatches: Baby steps for WoO rookie Zarin

April 2, 2026, 11:58 am

From series, staff, track and other reports

Logan Zarin (joshjamesartwork.com)

Among the latest notes and quotes from Dirt Late Model action, including this weekend’s tripleheader on the Schaeffer's Spring Nationals and a pair of Northern Allstars Late Model Series race in Kentucky:

Zarin's rookie bid

Two months into his first year on the road with the World of Outlaws Late Model Series, Logan Zarin is beginning to feel like he belongs.

Every newcomer to the tour expects to get kicked in the teeth on a regular basis, and Zarin was no different. The 23-year-old western Pennsylvania racer knew he was signing up for the toughest test of his career when he announced his bid for the MD3 Rookie of the Year Award, and he’s gotten exactly what he asked for.

However, the No. 1Z team has been making modest gains as of late. Zarin’s finishes have started to improve as a result, including a career-best 13th Saturday in his debut at Senoia (Ga.) Raceway.

“It’s going kind of like what we expected,” the Hookstown, Pa., driver said of the first 14 races of his rookie campaign. “We knew we were going to struggle a little bit down at these Southern tracks, but we’re finally starting to hit on something. Our results are starting to get a little better, so we’re just taking baby steps and just seeing what we can do.”

If competing against the best drivers in Late Model racing wasn’t a tall enough task, he’s been doing it in unknown territory nearly every night. The only track Zarin has raced at this year that he had been to before was Volusia Speedway Park in Barberville, Fla., but even then, the new dirt laid down last year meant his notes from 2024 only meant so much.

“I’ve been leaning on (racing consultant) Vinny Guliani a lot,” Zarin said. “He’s done this, he kind of points me in the right direction. And then just watching races on YouTube helps me a lot, just to kind of see what I need to do as the night goes on. Honestly, we just go into these races and try to qualify good, that just sets our whole rest of our night up.”

That’s a goal Zarin has been achieving more often in recent weeks compared to the opening stretch of the season. In the first nine races of the year, Zarin was relying on consolation races and provisionals almost every night, and the results yielded an average finish of 20.2 and three DNQs.

But March 14’s 14th-place finish at Smoky Mountain Speedway in Maryville, Tenn., kicked off a new chapter. Since then, he’s started every feature, improved his average finish by more than four spots to 16.0 and transferred out of his heat race last weekend at East Alabama Motor Speedway and Senoia last.

“We kind of hit on something a couple weeks ago,” Zarin said. “We’ve been fine-tuning it, and then our results are definitely starting to show. Not having to run B-mains all the time and getting decent finishes. Not what we want yet, but decent finishes in the feature is starting to help. We’ve just got to keep fine tuning on this thing and eventually we’ll be up there at the front.”

Before getting a shot at some racetracks closer to home territory in May, Zarin next heads too Farmer City (Ill.) Raceway on April 10-11 for the Illini 100 weekend.

“We don’t have nothing to prove to anybody,” Zarin said. “We’re just out here racing, having fun. Just make the features, run competitive and we’ll call that a win.” — Spence Smithback