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Aug 14, 2025 By Jonathan Guth 4 min read

For those who follow high school sports in the Uniontown area, Mason Zeigler may be remembered for making a shot from three quarters across the gym in a Laurel Highlands’ game against rival Uniontown in 2011.

Fast forward 14 ½ years and Zeigler is still making big plays, but on the race track, as the Chalk Hill native is one of the premier dirt track drivers in the country.

Zeigler, who graduated from Laurel Highlands in 2011, always had an interest in racing, but was enamored with motocross. He competed in the sport, but a serious injury and the lack of compensation that came while risking life and limb convinced Zeigler to choose a different path in racing.

“I crushed some discs in my back, and I realized at that point there was not enough reward for the risk,” Zeigler said. “I just fell in love with the circle tracks and the dirt. I also learned how much money is in that sport. A good friend of mine won over $2 million in dirt track racing a few years ago.”

Zeigler’s first experience with racing came when he visited the track at Roaring Knob Motorsports Complex in Markleysburg to watch Mel Minnick Jr. compete.

“My father used to sponsor him, and we would go and watch,” Zeigler said. “I started racing at Roaring Knob around 2010.”

Zeigler has won seven races this year, and due to his success, national racing publication, “DirtonDirt,” recognizes Zeigler as one of the top dirt track racing drivers in the country.

“The top critics in our sport take a poll and it is featured in ‘DirtonDirt’ and ‘FloRacing,'” said Zeigler. “To be recognized as one of the top 25 teams in the country is pretty cool.

“We have been very blessed. It is awesome to do something I love for a living. Who would have thought an old hillbilly boy from Chalk Hill could do something like this?”

Zeigler leads the United Late Model Series (ULMS) in points with 1,610. He has raced in seven events and earned a total of $34,029 in the series.

Zeigler won at Latrobe Speedway on May 10 before topping the field on the Dirt Track at Genesee in Batavia, N.Y., on the fourth of July.

He crossed the start-finish line first on July 19 at Path Valley Speedway in Spring Run and earned his fourth ULMS victory at Selinsgrove Speedway on Aug. 1.

The former Mustang had three wins and one top-five finish in June. He took the checkered flag at Path Valley Speedway in Spring Run on the 10th before a victory at Bedford Speedway on the 13th.

Zeigler captured a victory at Lernerville Speedway in Sarver on the 21st, which had a purse of $20,000. He was fifth in the $50,000 Lucas Oil race the same day.

“It was definitely a good weekend in Sarver,” said Zeigler. “We brought in about $35,000 that weekend. I have raced in the Lucas Oil Series, but I am doing really well in the ULMS right now. I hope to win the points championship in the ULMS this season.”

While dirt track racing is considered an “individual sport” on a technical basis, Zeigler says his team is just as important on the track as when he played basketball and football at Laurel Highlands.

“It is absolutely a team effort,” Zeigler said. “We have built a heck of a program, and we have a 20,000-square foot facility that we use to get everything ready for race day. Bryan (Liverman) is one of my crew guys. He came from North Carolina and lives here. I would say he is my crew chief.

“‘Buck’ (James Buckley) has raced with me since I was probably 18-years-old. He no longer goes on the road, but he works in our shop. It is nice to have two full-time guys. I also have a local boy, Darrell Myers, who has raced with me since I was a kid, and he is still with me.”

Zeigler and his crew are on a “break” this weekend, but will work to get their car back in tip-top shape when they head to Port Royal Speedway next Friday and Saturday for the Lucas Oil Series.

Following stops in Middlebourne and Pennsboro, W.Va., over Labor Day weekend, Zeigler and company Outlaw Speedway in Dundee, N.Y., on Sept. 12 before returning to Pennsylvania and Latrobe Speedway the following weekend.

The team is scheduled for a three-day stay in West Virginia from Oct. 9-11, as it competes for ULMS. The race on the 11th has a purse of $75,000.