Alfie George interview: from Islabike adventures to UCI road race victory

At just 22 years old, Alfie George has been steadily making waves on the French amateur racing circuit. George, who began his cycling journey at the age of 11, recently concluded a two-season stint with Vendée U and is set to embark on a new chapter in his career with SCO Dijon-Team Material-velo.com in 2024.

I consider my first two years as an under-23 missed years in terms of my development, so I want to give myself at least those two years extra now to keep developing and learning

The British Continental recently caught up with the Scot to look back on his cycling journey so far, from his initial forays on an Islabike to his first UCI road race win last season. He opens up about a challenging period with the British Cycling Senior Academy team, looks back on his first two seasons racing in France and underlines his continuing aspirations to secure a professional contract.

Tell us about how you got into cycling? 

My family have always been fairly active and sporty and like most kids I had a go at any sport possible when I was younger. I had an Islabike which I would ride all the time and I preferred that to walking when we went for dog walks. One day I just asked my parents if I could go down to the local track at Caird Park (now renamed the Mark Stewart Velodrome).

I’m not sure why I asked out of nowhere but Dad is a big cyclist so I often saw him off on his bike at the weekends. He followed the Tour de France so cycling was always there and I guess I wanted to try it out properly as a sport. I would have been 11 at that time and quickly fell in love with it.

Discovery Junior Cycling Club do great work with the youth riders and offer free track bikes for members. Of course, it wasn’t long before I wanted to race and I dived headfirst into cyclocross, track and road.

I love the cobbles and crosswinds and a race made hard by the bad weather

For readers unfamiliar with you, how would you describe yourself as a rider?

I like to think of myself as a ‘sprinter-y classics rider’. I love the cobbles and crosswinds and a race made hard by the bad weather. Having a decent sprint from a reduced group would be how I win a race.

I think I’m right in saying you spent two, Covid-hit years (2020 and 2021) at the GB Senior Academy. Describe the experience of being part of that set-up?

Yep, that’s correct. I had a brilliant time on the Junior Academy in 2018/19 and feel it really made me the bike rider and the person I am today. Unfortunately, I didn’t have as enjoyable an experience on the Senior Academy. I appreciate things were made worse with both Brexit and Covid, which I think contributed to a huge fall off in the quality of the system in those years. 

And what about your results in those years, and why didn’t things go well, from your perspective?

I think it’s clear from looking at any results database that things went disastrously wrong for me in those years compared to the results I had as a junior.

It started well and I looked forward to a block of racing in Belgium and Netherlands before Covid hit. For the next two years I really struggled for a multitude of reasons. I only had one more race in 2020, before a meagre calendar in 2021. I thrive of lots off racing, honing the race craft and tactics. I never was a guy to win ten races a year so when we were racing once a month it felt like every race was the first of the season and it was impossible to get into a groove.

I ended up in a not very good place mentally as well and it was all a negative spiral for me

I especially struggled watching all my friends who had followed similar pathways, until that point, racing week in week out on the continent whilst I was stuck in Manchester. I don’t mind getting my head kicked in, I just want to race consistently to improve. I ended up in a not very good place mentally as well and it was all a negative spiral for me.

I made the squad for the Tour of Britain that year and was looking forward to experiencing such a big race and imagined it would be a great end to the season. But it ended up being a different kind of positive experience to the one I hoped for, as I tested positive for Covid in the mandatory pre-race tests. At that point it felt like one thing after another was going wrong. 

When it became clear my days on the academy were numbered I took myself to some Nat B races off my own back and finished the season well at the national championships in Lincoln. Nothing special but I felt much more like myself. I managed to find a team in France, so after I’d spent most of October stressing, I felt things were heading in the right direction for 2022

British Cycling no longer runs the Senior Academy in the same way. Do you think that’s a loss for rider development in the UK?

In some ways absolutely it is. However, in those final years the quality of race programme the Academy could provide was dire and that was only holding the riders back. Now, riders are free to find their own road teams and return to Manchester for track blocks or going to major championships with the squad.

It’s more similar to the way most other nations run their systems and in hindsight I wish we’d had the same opportunity to do so. If the funding isn’t there to run a road programme it is a huge shame for British Cycling as a whole but allowing the track guys who also have huge talent on the road to find their own trade teams allows them to flourish on the road too rather than chaining them to the track in Manchester. Guys like Ethan Hayter and Matt Walls have shown it is possible to be a world class road rider and track rider simultaneously. 

After two years on the Academy I received a three month warning for my removal from the squad

You’ve been in France for the last couple of years. First off, tell us how and why you moved to Vendée U.

After two years on the Academy I received a three month warning for my removal from the squad. I could’ve stayed in Manchester and attempted to hit the frankly impossible benchmark objectives to stay on the squad but my coach basically said my time was up and it was clear I would be much better off searching for a team in October than in December.

At the time it was super stressful. Up until that point I had never had to find a team as I had followed the pathway since youth. I spent a few weeks sending my CV out to every team I could find a contact for without a single reply. It was crazy to think but I had to see the reality that if I didn’t find something that was career over before it really started. I was really really lucky that two of my best mates Archie Ryan and Lewis Askey put me in touch with their manager. Once he was on the case it was a different ball game and within 24 hours I had options in France. I owe those three everything for helping me continue in the sport.

If that’s the how, there isn’t too much more to say about why. Vendée U seemed like a solid and historic set up and what they were proposing allowed me to stay in their team house. It all just fell into place. I was still nervous about going to Europe and had no clue just how brilliant the team would be until I got there. I do think I fell on my feet with that one.

How much of an adjustment was it, moving to and racing in France?

To be perfectly honest, not as big as I had imagined. The team, staff and riders, were so welcoming. They accommodated me and tried to help me understand the language as best as possible. Everyone in the team house was so friendly.

I was set up in a huge château, which had been converted to the TotalEnergies service course, was given bikes, kit and races. It was exactly what I had been craving for the last two years

I had heard some horror stories and prepared myself for the worst and it couldn’t have been further from what I ended up with. I was set up in a huge château, which had been converted to the TotalEnergies service course, was given bikes, kit and races. It was exactly what I had been craving for the last two years. We raced almost every weekend, and the level was perfect for me. I knew if I played my cards right, I could win races.

Certainly, a big help was having Ben Peatfield in the house with me too. We hadn’t met before being teammates and immediately got along well, so I never felt lonely out there. It was just great fun, training and racing all the time. He spoke fluent French already which definitely made everything easier. The only negative I could think of would be the visa application process being one of the most frustrating things I’ve ever experienced.

Where have you been based? And much do you feel you are now integrated into the culture?

I was based in the Vendée region, North West France, 40 minutes south of Nantes. I really felt at home there and was very happy. I can speak pretty fluent French now. Although I’m sure it is far from perfect I can say everything I want to say and understand everything being said (until it’s round the dinner table and everyone is talking over each other!). I made some great friends in the team and the surrounding area so I would say I integrated nicely. 

Tell us a bit about the team Vendee U. How does it compare to a British team, from what you understand?

The whole French amateur scene is totally brilliant in my opinion. I understand I am fortunate to ride for Vendée U, one of the bigger and more successful clubs. We were provided bikes and spare bikes, TT bikes and wheels as well as great clothing.

Most DN1 teams will provide a small wage along with equipment and travel to races. I was able to live and ride full time thanks to this, the team house and support from the Rayner Foundation

It’s hard for me to compare having never ridden for a British team but when you hear of guys having to pay for rides in Continental teams you just feel that they got it right in France somehow. Most DN1 teams will provide a small wage along with equipment and travel to races. I was able to live and ride full time thanks to this, the team house and support from the Rayner Foundation. This is teams that are amateur and not branding themselves as pro teams but I would certainly say they’re closer to at least “semi-pro” with the support given. I was genuinely blown away.

For Vendée U specifically, our staff were amazing. We had one assistant, one mechanic and one DS for most races and they worked so hard to provide us with the best conditions possible. At bigger UCI or Coupe de France races there might be more staff but even then, at stage races, we would have a massage every night, team briefings on VeloViewer and Marvin, our mechanic, would be out until the early hours of the morning on the bikes making sure they were perfect. He’s the best mechanic I’ve ever seen.

What have been the highlights – and why –  from a racing perspective?

I’d say in general just the passion for cycling they have over there. Every weekend I could ride a big race, 160 rider fields, well organised, closed roads, podiums, race convoys, potentially even live streaming and well set up teams riding like pros in the bunch. On top of that the crowds that would come out for any level of race was amazing to see. A village would shut down for our races and everyone would be out having a drink and enjoying the day. 

Imagine the passion France has for the Tour de France, but on the island of Guadeloupe; this was their Tour de France

A specific racing highlight would be the Tour de la Guadeloupe. Everything I just mentioned but magnified! Imagine the passion France has for the Tour de France, but on the island of Guadeloupe; this was their Tour de France. Of course it was the cherry on top to win my first UCI race there. I’ll never forget that week. They had a five hour live show in the day followed by an hour of punditry in the evenings, with interviews coming in from riders’ hotels through the show. 

And any particular challenges?

Looking back I really struggle to pinpoint any real challenges. Learning the language was difficult of course and it isn’t ideal when you arrive and can’t understand a thing but I wouldn’t change it. Learning a new language is a great thing for anyone. I crashed a lot this year but again, with the support I had it wasn’t an issue which could’ve been different for me if I was elsewhere. As I said before, it would really have to be the whole visa process beforehand that was the biggest challenge and the only negative point from these last years. In 2021, my visa and passport were returned the day before my flight out, two days before my first race!

This year was your final season as an under-23. Have you felt any pressure this year to get results?

Not particularly. I had a feeling as the season drew to a close that I should be feeling some pressure but I wasn’t. I consider my first two years as an under-23 missed years in terms of my development, so I want to give myself at least those two years extra now to keep developing and learning as I race in Europe, as long as it remains financially viable. I saw I was still improving this year so as long as the passion and enjoyment is there I won’t give up trying to get that pro contract.

And what’s next for you? 

This year I’m riding for SCO-Dijon in the east of France. New opportunities and a new part of the country to explore. Racing wise it’s more of the same and I can’t wait!

I would love to be able to call cycling my job, even if it ended up being for only one or two years

And what are your ambitions now in cycling. How far do you hope to be able to take things?

I want to sign that professional contract. I would love to be able to call cycling my job, even if it ended up being for only one or two years. At the end of 2024 it would be brilliant to get onto a French UCI Continental team. With minimum wages and a fully professional calendar in some great races it would be the ideal step up for me to continue working towards where I want to be.

Guys are signing contracts younger and younger but I still firmly believe I can reach the level required. For me, it’s not about winning the Tour or the Giro but achieving that dream that I have held since I was 11 and if I can do that I’ll be a happy man.

Featured image: Keke Naza. Alfie George wins stage 7 of the Tour Cycliste International de la Guadeloupe (2.2).