A TEENAGEER has been promoted to the premier division of cycling after just two years of racing.

Jacob Booth celebrates his second anniversary in the saddle as a track cyclist on January 5 with a number of notable achievements under his belt.

The 17-year-old, a student at Sir John Deane's College, finished the season by coming second in the Manchester Regional Track League.

This followed a first place in the Association of Local Traders (ACT) Track League and a second in the Newcastle Track League.

The Middlewich teenager has also embarked on a road racing career during 2014, signing up for the Dave Hinde Racing Team.

"I think this year has gone better than I anticipated." he said.

"I started with a coach and since then I joined the team and I've got better and better throughout the season.

"I'm in the position now going into next year that's worlds apart from last year.

"This year was always meant to be a building block year, a progression on to next year.

"With cycling it's such a tough endurance sport – it's not about becoming a national champion overnight, it takes years to get up to that.

"I'm really happy moving into next year with a bit of training under my belt."

Jacob is currently in winter training mode, which is a greater mental and physical battle.

"Winter training is brutal," he said.

"It's all the extra wind and cold."

He is working on weaknesses identified throughout the last season, including endurance and hill climbing.

His training consists of cycling up hills in a bigger and harder gear and fitting in two-hour rides in the week and four-hour or five-hour rides on a Sunday.

All of this is carried out alongside studying A-levels in maths, chemistry, physics and PE but Jacob knows how to keep motivated.

"The best riders in the country are going to be out there no matter what and if you're not the best then there's obviously a reason for it," he said.

"I can happily say I'm not the best in the country so to get there I've got to make the most of all the time I've got.

"It's a bit of a mental battle to get out but as soon as I'm on the bike I'm in my element and forget about everything to concentrate on the job in hand."

Jacob's 2015 goals include winning a top five place in the track league and two or three top 10 places in the national series road races.