The 2011 Tour De France finished stage three on Monday with a massive pack of riders sprinting to the finish. Although the overall standings did not change, American cyclist Tyler Farrar took home the stage victory by a nose. He edged out second-place Roman Feillu and third-place Joaquin Rojas. Farrar led a pack of 172 cyclists (87% of the field) who finished in a virtual tie. After never previously winning a tour stage, Team Garmin-Cervelo has now won back-to-back stages after Thord Husholvd and TGC won the stage two team time trial.
The cyclists face a tougher challenge on Tuesday that could weed out some of the sprinters in the pack. Sprinters have had multiple opportunities early in the race. Stage three will not include monstrous climbs, but there is enough of an increase in elevation that it will take more than pure sprinting skills to pull out the victory. It shouldn't surprise anyone to see Thor Hushovd retain his slim overall lead. After three stages he is in a virtual tie with teammates David Millar. The two of them remain one second ahead of Cadel Evans of Santa Rosa-based BMC racing.
Levi Leipheimer remains ten seconds back with Radio Shack teammates Chris Horner, Andreas Kloden, and Janez Brajkovic
We'll be here for the entire race providing news updates and stage previews and recaps, particularly as they relate to Bay Area cyclist Levi Leipheimer. For more in-depth discussion on the 2011 Tour De France, head over to Podium Cafe. For more general Tour coverage, head over to the SB Nation story stream.