Joe Brookes journal #06: a year in France, a future to chase

Second-year under-23 Joe Brookes rides for the French AVC Aix-en-Provence team, and is supported by the Rayner Foundation. In his final journal post of 2024, Joe reflects on the transition from racing to rest. From sprinting at Paris-Tours U23 to staring at a blank training calendar, the shift felt strange.

It feels like only yesterday I was racing along the cobbled roads of Tours, sprinting towards the finish of the Paris-Tours U23, the final race of my season. Yet here I am, thinking about the fast-approaching start of a new season. The past year feels like a blur, coming and going in a flash.

After months of craving rest, it feels odd how quickly I’m itching to get back on the bike and start training again

It’s always a bit odd to make the sudden transition from the full intensity of racing and training to having time off, with a series of blank days set out before you in your training calendar. After months of craving rest, it feels odd how quickly I’m itching to get back on the bike and start training again.

Once you cross that final finish line of the season, you have the chance to relax those strict self-imposed controls and indulge in the cravings you resisted throughout the year. But it feels strange to me that as soon as the opportunity is there, I get bored of it. Instead, my mind soon shifts to thinking about the next year’s goals and how soon I should start working towards them.

For me, however, this year these mixed feelings also came with some medically ordered rest, as within a few days of my season ending I underwent a septoplasty – basically a “nose job”. This was no cosmetic indulgence, there was no aim to help me land a spot on Love Island. It was to resolve a long-standing issue that would finally allow me to breathe properly through my nose, something I have not been able to do for as long as I can remember. The surgeon tells me my issue was due to breaking my nose at some time in the distant past, not that I can recall any specific incident that caused it.

I ended up spending my final rest week lying in my bed nursing two mighty back eyes, with a steady drip of blood seeping into a gauze bandage

So, I ended up spending my final rest week lying in my bed nursing two mighty back eyes, with a steady drip of blood seeping into a gauze bandage that thankfully kept the blood from dripping into the apple juice I was only able to sip through a straw. It was not how I had originally planned to spend my off-season. However, it has been well worth it. The operation went smoothly, recovery was quick, and when it came round to getting back on the bike, I felt my breathing capacity was much improved.

Getting back into training whilst at home in the UK is, on the one hand, great, as it comes with plenty of perks – additional personal space, spending time with family, a fridge that never gets empty, food ready on the table and fresh kit always to be found in the wardrobe. But the downside is that the winter weather here is no match for the sunny roads of Provence. So, progressively increasing my endurance through weeks of steady training has also required the mental resilience that we all know is necessary for those long indoor sessions on Zwift.

As 2024 draws to a close, I am now fully focussed in preparing for my return to France for another season with AVCA. This year there is a change in the status of my team. In mid 2024, the French Cycling Federation (FFC) introduced an opportunity for some of the N1 level teams to “step up” to a newly formed Federation Continental level – a new tier designed to slot between French N1 and UCI Continental level. This new status brings the chance for those teams making that change to access higher level races in 2025, whilst still being able to compete in many of the races seen in the French amateur racing calendar. AVCA has taken this step to the new level, which is hugely exciting although in practice, the calendar will still have many familiar races that we rode last year, and the team will still be operating to similar budgetary challenges faced by many of the French amateur teams.

It is sad to see that these financial pressures have resulted in a number of teams stepping down a level or even simply calling it a day and ceasing to operate. In the face of this challenge, it is great to see the FFC trying new ways to maintain that competitive edge and allow teams to develop within its structure. I look at this in contrast to the British racing scene, which suffered the loss of some long-standing races as well as our only remaining domestic UCI Continental teams. At grassroots level in the UK there are many dedicated volunteers seeking to provide great domestic racing opportunities for UK riders in the face of what seems to me to be limited support from the top, compounded by ever-increasing barriers to overcome. The UK sometimes feels like it’s heading in the opposite direction to what I see the FFC trying to achieve, which gives me great sadness.

I’ve seen first-hand the depth of British talent and it would be a shame if today’s crop does not get the same opportunity to showcase their abilities as I had, not only abroad but also in high-quality UK races

I have only been able to get to where I am now through participating in some fantastic domestic events put on by people whose dedication to the cause I can only admire. Having raced as a first-year under-23 in the UK, I’ve seen first-hand the depth of British talent and it would be a shame if today’s crop does not get the same opportunity to showcase their abilities as I had, not only abroad but also in high-quality UK races. I am therefore delighted to see my old club announce they are bringing a new race to the under-23 series, hosting an event in June. William Fotheringham and all at Halesowen Academy are certainly giving something back.

This year, I also see there’s been a noticeable increase in the number of British riders joining French teams, no doubt driven by the reducing opportunity in the UK. I hope all those doing so enjoy their time and make the most of the opportunities they will certainly experience. My experience this past year has been great and regardless of whatever path my cycling future holds, the memories and lessons I’ve gained will always stay with me.

So, with my personal “Project 2025” in full swing, I’m looking forward to building on what I have achieved this past year. I hope to have the chance to apply some of the race craft learnt from my first year in France. With my team’s race calendar evolving, I know there’s still plenty more to learn, but I’m ready to embrace these new challenges and look forward to another year of racing with AVCA in what will be the team’s 100^th year as a club.