By Chuck Corder

It takes Garrett Jones a couple of rings before he answers his iPhone.

When he does, the 16-year-old late model driver’s voice, which has noticeably dropped several octaves, echoes like he’s trapped down a well.

“I just got my license!� Jones shouts from inside his 2015 Chevy Silverado, the cherished birthday gift bestowed upon him from his grandfather, Larry.

And, so, eight days after celebrating his Sweet 16, Jones has officially become a distracted driver. Thank you, Bluetooth.

But when Jones gets behind the Tracy Goodson No. 1 Super Late Model on Saturday at Five Flags Speedway for the Deep South Crane Rentals 150, rest assured his attention will be focused fully on the task at hand.

“Pensacola is unlike any track we go to,� Jones said. “It’s as technical a racetrack as you’ll find.�

Jones, a past Pro Late Model champion at Five Flags, is bound and determined to go out with a flurry in the Deep South Crane Rentals Blizzard Series and Southern Super Series finale.

With Saturday’s race being the final stop before the 48th annual Snowball derby in December, Jones knows a lot of first-time drivers will try to master the famed half-mile asphalt oval.

He sits fourth in the overall Southern Super Series points chase and is the odds-on favorite to win Rookie of the Year honors.

“The goal is always to be up front,� said Jones, seventh in the Blizzard standings. “Usually, if you’re running in the top-five, you should be OK and be able to run a clean race and not worry about cautions and wrecks. But as far as the competition goes, I consider us to be one of the teams to beat.�

SLM teams down to the local divisions will carry a similar philosophy into the Night of Champions on Saturday where hardware awaits them if they can have strong runs to the checkered flag.

A pair of Caseys eye up SLM crowns with Casey Smith maintaining a 62-point lead for the Southern Super Series championship and Casey Roderick holding a slim nine-point lead for the Blizzard Series title.

Track championships will also be handed out for the Better Built Tool Boxes Pro Trucks, Beef “O� Brady’s Sportsman and the Butler U-Pull-It Bombers.

Gates open at 2 p.m. Saturday with qualifying for all divisions set for 4:45. The night’s features begin approximately at 7:30 p.m.

Admission is $15 for adults; $12 for seniors, military and students; $5 for children ages 6 to 11; and free for kids under 6.

Jones’ debut season in the Southern Super Series has been quite the roller coaster ride. Behind the steering wheel of his familiar No. 88, Jones scored a pair of top-five finishes in the first two races, under the tutelage and close watch of crew chief Kelly Bires.

While Jones continued to regularly score top-10s all the way into June, a stretch of seven races, the outcomes were stuck in reverse.

“At the beginning of the season, we had great chemistry,� Jones said of Bires, who has competed in more than 90 Sprint Cup and Xfinity Series races. “But, it fell away during the summer. We were running decent. Nothing to complain about, but we weren’t qualifying well at all. We were handicapping ourselves.�

The pair finally split following a disappointing 13th in late June at Montgomery.

Enter Goodson and Mike Garvey. It was a natural fit after Jones hopped into a Goodson PLM during a doubleheader feature in June at Five Flags.

When Garvey, the short-track veteran, scaled back his driving, he was happy to step in as Jones’ new crew chief while the kid got acclimated to the No. 1 Buddy’s Home Furnishings SLM.

“When we started running with Mike, it picked up instantly,� said Jones, who scored fourth- and third-place finishes in back-to-back races in Mobile in July and August, respectively. “It was cool to find out right off the bat that we drive a lot alike.

“Mike has put in thousands of laps around every place we go to. I’m still learning and practicing how to be good at the end of the race, and Mike has helped me so much with that.�

Jones’ biggest obstacle to overcome might be his patience. For a teenager so desperate to taste victory once again, not piling up the checkereds can feel like wasted nights.

But Jones’ age belies his maturity in some ways. He remains humble about the privilege of driving a racecar and knows it’s infinitely better than suffering through a driver’s license test.

“I was nervous about it, but it was boring,� said Jones, who resisted the urge to cut some burnouts and donuts with his instructor a seat away. “I don’t think she would’ve liked that. She wasn’t in a good mood.�