September 8, 2009 (St. Louis, Missouri) – On Stage 2 from Ste. Genevieve to Cape Girardeau, 180.9km, Planet Energy served notice that they are here and they’re racing to win stages. Rolling out of the small town of Ste Genevieve (population 4,000), Francois Parisien (Planet Energy) broke away from the peloton after numerous early attempts by other riders didn’t stick.

He told us that he waited and waited until finally he felt the time was right to jump away after the second KOM, riding solo until he was joined by Garmin-Slipstream’s Tim Duggan. They rapidly built a five-minute lead which the peloton kept on the radar for the next 70 miles/112km. Parisien said he thought that a small break would be allowed to get away as “It’s easier for them to reel it back towards the end.”

He was adamant that “you always race to win” adding that’s the only reason he races his bike. He was hoping that they would be allowed to continue their escape but at 10-20km it was not going down super fast so he attacked Duggan continually trying to go solo. He didn’t think there was a commitment to ride together so it made sense to keep attacking.

Parisien loved riding through the towns and seeing the school children cheering on the side of the road. While it was not possible to thank them all, he said that he tried to toss an empty water bottle their way. Today’s course was his favorite type and it reminded him of the days when he learned to race in northern France and Bretagne. He lived in France for four years before returning to Canada and then heading to Spain which he also really likes for riding. “I am a punchy rider. Not good enough for a massive sprint but I definitely like being aggressive in this type of race – it’s really good for me.”

Was there added pressure showcasing a Canada team here to play in the big leagues? “Canadian cycling is better than ever with four Canadians at the Vuelta right now. In Europe they underestimate the level of talent here in North America,” he commented. He also stated that he felt that Canada was similar to Australia from a few years ago in terms of progression. There are still Canadian riders who currently can compete on the world stage, but that it will take a bit of time for Canadian cycling to get there. and Planet Energy hopes to help in this evolution.

He said that it’s very important that Planet Energy show that they are here to try and win races. “We may be underdogs but we’re here to do our jobs and grow the team and end up in Europe.” With Columbia’s big train, Parisien knew in the back of his mind that they were coming and when it became apparent that he was not going to be successful there was satisfaction knowing he could only do his best.

After they were caught he flatted before entering the town, missing the opportunity to come in with the peloton adding insult to injury. The rest of Planet Energy team was waiting for him to come in but the celebration had begun with an obvious job well done on today’s stage. The excitement at the team bus was palpable with smiles all around and the fans cheering like they were rock stars. Planet Energy has certainly caught the imagination of the American public!

Results

1. Mark Cavendish (Gbr) Team Columbia-HTC 4:16:53
2. Thor Hushovd (Nor) Cervelo Test Team
3. Juan Jose Haedo (Arg) Team Saxo Bank
4. Brett Lancaster (Aus) Cervelo Test Team
5. Martin Gilbert (Can) Planet Energy
6. Alex Candelario (USA) Kelly Benefit Strategies
7. Davide Malacarne (Ita) Quick Step
8. Antonio Cruz (USA) BMC Racing Team
9. Guillaume Boivin (Can) Planet Energy
10. Daniel Oss (Ita) Liquigas
11. Michael Friedman (USA) Garmin-Slipstream
12. Michael Rogers (Aus) Team Columbia-HTC
13. George Hincapie (USA) Team Columbia-HTC
14. Dario Cataldo (Ita) Quick Step
15. Kevin Seeldraeyers (Bel) Quick Step
16. Thomas Vedel Kvist (Den) Quick Step
17. Frank Pipp (USA) Bissell Pro Cycling
18. Jeremy Powers (USA) Jelly Belly Cycling Team
19. Andrew Pinfold (Can) OUCH Presented By Maxxis
20. Addy Engels (Ned) Quick Step
21. Matthew Wilson (Aus) Team Type 1
22. Dominique Cornu (Bel) Quick Step
23. Danilo Wyss (Swi) BMC Racing Team
24. Frederique Robert (Bel) Quick Step
25. Moises Aldape Chavez (Mex) Team Type 1
26. David Veilleux (Can) Kelly Benefit Strategies
27. Florian Stalder (Swi) BMC Racing Team
28. Bernard Van Ulden (USA) Jelly Belly Cycling Team
29. Christopher Jones (USA) Team Type 1
30. Tomas Vaitkus (Ltu) Astana
31. Gregory Rast (Swi) Astana
32. Yaroslav Popovych (Ukr) Astana
33. Andy Jacques-Maynes (USA) Bissell Pro Cycling
34. Janez Brajkovic (Slo) Astana
35. Davide Frattini (Ita) Colavita/Sutter Home Presented By Cooking Light
36. Levi Leipheimer (USA) Astana
37. Neil Shirley (USA) Kelly Benefit Strategies
38. Timothy Johnson (USA) OUCH Presented By Maxxis
39. Peter Latham (NZl) Bissell Pro Cycling
40. Michael Creed (USA) Team Type 1
41. Darren Lill (RSA) Team Type 1
42. Matthew Rice (Aus) Jelly Belly Cycling Team
43. Luis Romero Amaran (Cub) Colavita/Sutter Home Presented By Cooking Light
44. Steven Cozza (USA) Garmin-Slipstream
45. Anthony Colby (USA) Colavita/Sutter Home Presented By Cooking Light
46. Marco Pinotti (Ita) Team Columbia-HTC
47. Valery Kobzarenko (Ukr) Team Type 1
48. Brian Vandborg (Den) Liquigas
49. Jason McCartney (USA) Team Saxo Bank
50. Tom Zirbel (USA) Bissell Pro Cycling
51. Michael Barry (Can) Team Columbia-HTC
52. Jeffry Louder (USA) BMC Racing Team
53. Edward King (USA) Cervelo Test Team
54. Dan Bowman (USA) Kelly Benefit Strategies
55. Shawn Milne (USA) Team Type 1
56. Lars Ytting Bak (Den) Team Saxo Bank
57. Gustav Larsson (Swe) Team Saxo Bank
58. Heinrich Haussler (Ger) Cervelo Test Team
59. Danny Pate (USA) Garmin-Slipstream
60. Ben Jacques-Maynes (USA) Bissell Pro Cycling
61. Thomas Frei (Swi) BMC Racing Team
62. Jason Donald (USA) Garmin-Slipstream
63. Mathias Frank (Swi) BMC Racing Team
64. Nicki Sorensen (Den) Team Saxo Bank
65. Brent Bookwalter (USA) BMC Racing Team
66. Andrey Zeits (Kaz) Astana
67. Timothy Duggan (USA) Garmin-Slipstream
68. Reid Mumford (USA) Kelly Benefit Strategies
69. Alexandr Dyachenko (Kaz) Astana
70. Marcus Ljungqvist (Swe) Team Saxo Bank
71. Bruno Langlois (Can) Planet Energy
72. Rory Sutherland (Aus) OUCH Presented By Maxxis
73. Andrew Guptill (USA) Colavita/Sutter Home Presented By Cooking Light
74. Andrew Bajadali (USA) Kelly Benefit Strategies
75. David Zabriskie (USA) Garmin-Slipstream
76. Bradley White (USA) OUCH Presented By Maxxis
77. Chris Anker Sorensen (Den) Team Saxo Bank
78. Andrew Randell (Can) Planet Energy
79. Scott Wizanski (USA) Kelly Benefit Strategies
80. Lucas Sebastian Haedo (Arg) Colavita/Sutter Home Presented By Cooking Light
81. Joaquin Novoa Menedez (Spa) Cervelo Test Team
82. Steve Morabito (Swi) Astana
83. Floyd Landis (USA) OUCH Presented By Maxxis
84. William Frischkorn (USA) Garmin-Slipstream
85. Ryan Roth (Can) Planet Energy
86. Marcel Wyss (Swi) Cervelo Test Team
87. Christopher Baldwin (USA) OUCH Presented By Maxxis
88. Jeremy Vennell (NZl) Bissell Pro Cycling
89. Jeremy Hunt (Gbr) Cervelo Test Team
90. Ryan Anderson (Can) Kelly Benefit Strategies
91. Jackson Stewart (USA) BMC Racing Team
92. Will Routley (Can) Jelly Belly Cycling Team
93. Andreas Klier (Ger) Cervelo Test Team
94. Karl Menzies (Aus) OUCH Presented By Maxxis
95. Kiel Reijnen (USA) Jelly Belly Cycling Team
96. John Murphy (USA) OUCH Presented By Maxxis 0:42
97. Bernhard Eisel (Aut) Team Columbia-HTC 0:57
98. Matthew Crane (USA) Jelly Belly Cycling Team
99. Phillip Gaimon (USA) Jelly Belly Cycling Team 1:04
100. Keven Lacombe (Can) Planet Energy 1:05
101. Craig Lewis (USA) Team Columbia-HTC
102. Fabio Calabria (Aus) Team Type 1
103. Kyle Wamsley (USA) Colavita/Sutter Home Presented By Cooking Light 1:37
104. Valerio Agnoli (Ita) Liquigas 2:19
105. Kanstantsin Siutsou (Blr) Team Columbia-HTC
106. Jens Voigt (Ger) Team Saxo Bank
107. Anibal Borrajo (Arg) Colavita/Sutter Home Presented By Cooking Light
108. Omer Kem (USA) Bissell Pro Cycling
109. Franco Pellizotti (Ita) Liquigas
110. Alessandro Vanotti (Ita) Liquigas 3:49
111. Charly Vives (Can) Planet Energy 4:31
112. Francois Parisien (Can) Planet Energy
113. Tyler Wren (USA) Colavita/Sutter Home Presented By Cooking Light 4:43
114. Jurgen Van De Walle (Bel) Quick Step
115. Charles Bradley Huff (USA) Jelly Belly Cycling Team
116. Francesco Chicchi (Ita) Liquigas 7:17
HD Cody O’reilly (USA) Bissell Pro Cycling 0:29:07
DNF Christian Vandevelde (USA) Garmin-Slipstream

GC after Stage 2

1. Mark Cavendish (Gbr) Team Columbia-HTC 7:00:29
2. Thor Hushovd (Nor) Cervelo Test Team 0:10
3. Juan Jose Haedo (Arg) Team Saxo Bank
4. Moises Aldape Chavez (Mex) Team Type 1 0:12
5. Tomas Vaitkus (Ltu) Astana 0:14
6. Chris Anker Sorensen (Den) Team Saxo Bank 0:16
7. Timothy Duggan (USA) Garmin-Slipstream 0:17
8. Michael Rogers (Aus) Team Columbia-HTC
9. Lars Ytting Bak (Den) Team Saxo Bank 0:18
10. Kiel Reijnen (USA) Jelly Belly Cycling Team 0:19
11. Martin Gilbert (Can) Planet Energy 0:20
12. Antonio Cruz (USA) BMC Racing Team
13. Alex Candelario (USA) Kelly Benefit Strategies
14. Davide Malacarne (Ita) Quick Step
15. Michael Friedman (USA) Garmin-Slipstream
16. Dario Cataldo (Ita) Quick Step
17. Danilo Wyss (Swi) BMC Racing Team
18. Daniel Oss (Ita) Liquigas
19. Matthew Wilson (Aus) Team Type 1
20. Brett Lancaster (Aus) Cervelo Test Team
21. Frederique Robert (Bel) Quick Step
22. Davide Frattini (Ita) Colavita/Sutter Home Presented By Cooking Light
23. Guillaume Boivin (Can) Planet Energy
24. Dominique Cornu (Bel) Quick Step
25. Janez Brajkovic (Slo) Astana
26. George Hincapie (USA) Team Columbia-HTC
27. Neil Shirley (USA) Kelly Benefit Strategies
28. Kevin Seeldraeyers (Bel) Quick Step
29. Gregory Rast (Swi) Astana
30. Lucas Sebastian Haedo (Arg) Colavita/Sutter Home Presented By Cooking Light
31. Florian Stalder (Swi) BMC Racing Team
32. Frank Pipp (USA) Bissell Pro Cycling
33. David Veilleux (Can) Kelly Benefit Strategies
34. Luis Romero Amaran (Cub) Colavita/Sutter Home Presented By Cooking Light
35. Matthew Rice (Aus) Jelly Belly Cycling Team
36. Danny Pate (USA) Garmin-Slipstream
37. Marco Pinotti (Ita) Team Columbia-HTC
38. Thomas Vedel Kvist (Den) Quick Step
39. Karl Menzies (Aus) OUCH Presented By Maxxis
40. Anthony Colby (USA) Colavita/Sutter Home Presented By Cooking Light
41. Jason McCartney (USA) Team Saxo Bank
42. Brian Vandborg (Den) Liquigas
43. Michael Barry (Can) Team Columbia-HTC
44. Jason Donald (USA) Garmin-Slipstream
45. Gustav Larsson (Swe) Team Saxo Bank
46. Steven Cozza (USA) Garmin-Slipstream
47. Bernard Van Ulden (USA) Jelly Belly Cycling Team
48. Bradley White (USA) OUCH Presented By Maxxis
49. Alexandr Dyachenko (Kaz) Astana
50. Brent Bookwalter (USA) BMC Racing Team
51. Edward King (USA) Cervelo Test Team
52. Nicki Sorensen (Den) Team Saxo Bank
53. Michael Creed (USA) Team Type 1
54. Levi Leipheimer (USA) Astana
55. Scott Wizanski (USA) Kelly Benefit Strategies
56. Darren Lill (RSA) Team Type 1
57. Thomas Frei (Swi) BMC Racing Team
58. Addy Engels (Ned) Quick Step
59. Ryan Roth (Can) Planet Energy
60. Yaroslav Popovych (Ukr) Astana
61. Rory Sutherland (Aus) OUCH Presented By Maxxis
62. Dan Bowman (USA) Kelly Benefit Strategies
63. Marcel Wyss (Swi) Cervelo Test Team
64. Jackson Stewart (USA) BMC Racing Team
65. Andrew Pinfold (Can) OUCH Presented By Maxxis
66. Jeremy Powers (USA) Jelly Belly Cycling Team
67. Ryan Anderson (Can) Kelly Benefit Strategies
68. Jeffry Louder (USA) BMC Racing Team
69. David Zabriskie (USA) Garmin-Slipstream
70. Floyd Landis (USA) OUCH Presented By Maxxis
71. Reid Mumford (USA) Kelly Benefit Strategies
72. William Frischkorn (USA) Garmin-Slipstream
73. Andrey Zeits (Kaz) Astana
74. Andy Jacques-Maynes (USA) Bissell Pro Cycling
75. Bruno Langlois (Can) Planet Energy
76. Andrew Randell (Can) Planet Energy
77. Marcus Ljungqvist (Swe) Team Saxo Bank
78. Christopher Jones (USA) Team Type 1
79. Andrew Guptill (USA) Colavita/Sutter Home Presented By Cooking Light
80. Andrew Bajadali (USA) Kelly Benefit Strategies
81. Christopher Baldwin (USA) OUCH Presented By Maxxis
82. Mathias Frank (Swi) BMC Racing Team
83. Ben Jacques-Maynes (USA) Bissell Pro Cycling
84. Jeremy Vennell (NZl) Bissell Pro Cycling
85. Will Routley (Can) Jelly Belly Cycling Team
86. Peter Latham (NZl) Bissell Pro Cycling
87. Valery Kobzarenko (Ukr) Team Type 1
88. Tom Zirbel (USA) Bissell Pro Cycling
89. Steve Morabito (Swi) Astana
90. Joaquin Novoa Menedez (Spa) Cervelo Test Team
91. Heinrich Haussler (Ger) Cervelo Test Team
92. Andreas Klier (Ger) Cervelo Test Team
93. Jeremy Hunt (Gbr) Cervelo Test Team 0:59
94. John Murphy (USA) OUCH Presented By Maxxis 1:02
95. Bernhard Eisel (Aut) Team Columbia-HTC 1:17
96. Matthew Crane (USA) Jelly Belly Cycling Team
97. Keven Lacombe (Can) Planet Energy 1:25
98. Fabio Calabria (Aus) Team Type 1
99. Craig Lewis (USA) Team Columbia-HTC
100. Timothy Johnson (USA) OUCH Presented By Maxxis 1:34
101. Phillip Gaimon (USA) Jelly Belly Cycling Team 1:53
102. Kyle Wamsley (USA) Colavita/Sutter Home Presented By Cooking Light 1:57
103. Shawn Milne (USA) Team Type 1 2:08
104. Kanstantsin Siutsou (Blr) Team Columbia-HTC 2:39
105. Jens Voigt (Ger) Team Saxo Bank
106. Valerio Agnoli (Ita) Liquigas
107. Anibal Borrajo (Arg) Colavita/Sutter Home Presented By Cooking Light
108. Franco Pellizotti (Ita) Liquigas
109. Omer Kem (USA) Bissell Pro Cycling 3:16
110. Alessandro Vanotti (Ita) Liquigas 4:09
111. Francois Parisien (Can) Planet Energy 4:48
112. Jurgen Van De Walle (Bel) Quick Step 5:03
113. Charles Bradley Huff (USA) Jelly Belly Cycling Team
114. Charly Vives (Can) Planet Energy 5:20
115. Tyler Wren (USA) Colavita/Sutter Home Presented By Cooking Light 5:46
116. Francesco Chicchi (Ita) Liquigas 7:37