Just over six months ago Darren Rafferty set off for France from his home in Coalisland, Co Tyrone, as an anonymous junior rider from Ireland. It wasn't long before people outside his home country knew his name.
The 18-year-old wasted no time in mid July last year on the French junior scene, winning the first stage race he rode for Team 31 Jollycycles U19. And then the flood gates opened; win after win rolling in almost every time he pinned numbers on. By the time he left French shores – less than two months after arriving – he'd caught the eye of several influential figures in the pro game.
Now on the cusp of a big year with Alex Merckx’s Hagens Berman Axeon, Rafferty spoke to stickybottle about his whirlwind six months, his hectic racing plans for the weeks ahead, his outlook on the sport and his success and training so far.
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Asked if he reflected on that incredible July and August in France last year and felt very pleased with how it had all gone, the level-headed teenager was having none of it.
“Oh no, I never really get
too excited. I never get too annoyed or…. Well, I probably get more annoyed
than I get happy,” he laughs. “I never get that excited about how much I’ve
won, there’s always something bigger.
“I just know that this
year is not going to be like last year, there’s going to be a lot more hard
work. I think it’ll be more rewarding; improving throughout the year rather
than winning. I’d prefer to be ‘almost there’ than winning; it’s about having
to push yourself and then making progress.
“I kinda got on a nice roll (in France last summer); got the training in, had a good team, it was all going well. So hopefully I can now carry that form in (to this season), though I know I’m not going be anywhere near those results now that I’m U23 or elite. But I hope I have enough shape to be there or thereabouts.”
Today he completed his
first race for his new team; keeping out of trouble at the 154km Trofej Umag (1.1) in Croatia before helping
position Hagens Berman Axeon’s sprinter Dries De Pooter, who took 8th.
“It all went
well, it was great to be back racing again and it was a solid start to the year
with the team,” he said.
Many changes have come Rafferty’s way of late. He finished school for good last summer and since then has launched himself onto the international scene with that prolific stint as a junior in France. He then finished 4th in the Europeans and 11th in the Worlds and won the Irish junior road and TT titles.
Then came news of the contract with Hagens Berman Axeon, one of the world’s best development teams. And before he had even turned a pedal for that team he was invited by WorldTour outfit QuickStep Alpha Vinyl to spend a few days with it on its January training camp in Calpe, Spain; impressive stuff for the teenager who cut his teeth at home with Island Wheelers.
In recent weeks he has also left the comfort of the family home and moved full-time to Girona; a big step for an 18-year-old – even one who appears to have the world at his feet. But he is far from over-awed and is keen to find his bearings in these early days, saying he will take the next few races in Croatia to “see where I’m at and assess”.
“I know I’m not going to be too far away. The first few races are fast sprint days where I’m not going to be too stressed about being there or thereabouts. But if I’m getting around and feeling alright, I’ll be taking confidence from that."
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With a near two-week training camp in Tuscany under his belt with his new team, he said he trained there for more consecutive days than he has ever done and also did more hours than ever; a sure sign he wasn’t pushed too hard in training as a junior.
“We were in Tuscany for 12
days on the camp, it was very nice. I met the team, stayed in a nice place and
got some really good training in. It was my biggest week of training and it
worked out quite good,” he says.
Rafferty described the training camp routine as the simplest form of life he could think of; up at 7.30am and breakfast at 8am followed by a 10am roll out for the training ride. On returning from a ride the athletes had lunch, followed by massages, with dinner around 7-8pm. They then had a period of an hour or two hanging out with team mates and “everyone getting to know each other”.
“It’s mainly about staying
as relaxed as possible but getting some solid training done in the group,
getting plenty of hours. And then they do some testing to see how everyone is
going and then just getting ready for racing, pretty much. So it’s busy but
it’s simple.”
Despite all of the riders
being at a top level and many meeting for the first time - and no-doubt trying
to get a handle on each other - Rafferty said nobody got carried away on the
group rides.
“On some days there was
some hard efforts but the majority of it was endurance rides,” he explains. “We
had a couple of six-hour days. Over the last seven days of the camp we did 30
hours. That was a lot more than I’d ever done before; which would have been 24
or 25 hours in a week. So it was tough, but when you’re not doing much else
apart from cycling, it is manageable.
“I think come day 11 or day 12, everyone was pretty tired but there was also a couple of shorter rest days in there. But 12 days was the longest I had ever gone being on the bike every single day, so that part of it was tough.”
When the training camp was completed, Rafferty then returned home to Co Tyrone, packed his bags and moved to Girona, Spain, which is now his new base.
“I could feel the impact
of the camp wearing off, in a positive way, which was nice,” he said, adding
while moving out of the family home and to a foreign country on his own was a
not insignificant step, he was enjoying it.
“I got an idea of it in
France last year and there’s six riders from the team who live in Girona, so
that’s quite nice. We don’t all go out with each other all the time, but it’s
quite nice having a group there when you need it.”
Rafferty continued to race last year into October, followed by an off-season break and contracting Covid-19 – “got it out of the way at a good time”. He added he rode some cyclocross races “to keep from getting bored” and was generally focused on “getting the hours in, getting the work in at home”.
The first six weeks of the season will be busy for Rafferty. After getting his 2022 campaign under underway today at Umag Trophy (1.2) in Croatia, he follows that up with the 156km Poreč Trophy (1.2), also in Croatia on Sunday.
Continuing the Croatian theme, he then rides the Istrian Spring Trophy (2.2) from March 10th to 13th. It includes a prologue TT and the road stages feature more challenging than his first two races, meaning Rafferty will be able to quickly gauge himself off the opposition.
After his current two-week period in Croatia he returns to his base in Girona for a short period before turning his attention to a brace of French races; Le Triptyque des Monts et Châteaux (2.2U), from March 31st to April 3rd, followed by Circuit des Ardennes from April 6th to 9th. After that, he may ride U23 Gent Wevelgem, though selection has not yet been confirmed.
Last year he made more progress in a matter of weeks than anyone could have imagined. And while he’s competing against the bigger riders now, few would bet against him making his mark and doing that quickly.
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