. . and welcome to stage 3 of the 2008 Amgen Tour of California. Today serves up a 102.7-mile leg-breaker from Modesto to San Jose, with five categorized climbs, including the hors categorie grind to the 4360-foot summit of Mt. Hamilton and the 2000-foot Cat. 1 Sierra Road ascent, which has been decisive in previous editions of the tour.

Racing is due to get under way at 10 a.m. local time. In the meantime, VeloNews editor Ben Delaney has some thoughts on today's crucial stage. You can pick his brain here. Race director Jim Birrell is anticipating a shift at the top of the general classification. "We think there will be a new lead change with the Mt. Hamilton climb," he said. "People may underestimate it, so it will be interesting to see how it plays out." Word.

Things look a little less grim than during yesterday's rain-sodden stage, which saw Tom Boonen (Quick Step) sprint to the victory and Tyler Farrar (Slipstream-Chipotle) seize the yellow jersey. But there's still a chance of showers in the forecast this morning, with highs in the upper 50s. It's damp and brisk in San Jose right now.

Yesterday's wet weather aside, AEG Sports president Andrew Messick says the first three days of the race have attracted some 425,000 spectators. "All of the stages have been packed with spectators, and we are delighted with the overall response to the race and athletes," he said.

The tour is on the road and rolling.

The guys will do a pair of parade laps for the fans in Modesto before getting down to business.

. . . but sunny doesn't equate to warm, not in Northern California. We're seeing lots of arm warmers on at the start.

The race and its accompanying caravan got a frosty reception from Stinson Beach fire chief Kenny Stevens. The chief has groused about the Tour of California since its inception, and this year was no exception, according to the Marin Independent Journal. "It's still a car race with bicycles," he told the newspaper after the tour rolled through his town. "All it takes is one little mistake - someone stepping out into the street - and someone's going to get smoked. The only thing that makes me happy is that it's over and no one got hurt or killed." The chief was clicking away with a digi-cam as the tour roared past; no word on whether he will have 27 8-by-10 color glossy pictures with circles and arrows and a paragraph on the back of each one explaining what each one was to be used in evidence against us.

Levi Leipheimer's Astana team will not be invited to Tirreno-Adriatico and Milan-San Remo, but the team's Kazakh sponsors remain solidly behind Johan Bruyneel's squad, according to VeloNews European correspondent Andrew Hood.

UCI president Pat McQuaid promises to "do everything possible" to see that Astana's Alberto Contador, the reigning Tour de France champion, gets a chance to defend his title in this year's Tour. Says McQuaid: "It would be a tragedy if Contador could not defend his title. It's unjust and unjustifiable. It's a decision taken by people who don't understand this sport."

Adam Hansen (High Road) did not take the start this morning. No word on what's ailing him; we'll try to find out and get back to you.

Looks like nobody's in a big hurry to clock in and get to work this morning. And who can blame them? It's gonna be a long shift.

Crash. Couple wheel changes there.

. . . were Bernhard Kohl (Gerolsteiner), Kim Kirchen (High Road) and Steven Cozza (Slipstream-Chipotle).

The Saunier Duval rider is jumping, but not getting anywhere.

. . . and then a Credit Agricole.

. . . Paul Martens. The CA guy, we don't know yet.

We'll get you IDs as soon as race radio fills us in.

Martens, Cyril Lemoine (Credit Agricole) and Scott Nydam (BMC Racing Team).

But there's plenty of activity back in the bunch, albeit unorganized.

Martens is at 5:38 back on GC, with Nydam at 8:15 and Lemoine at 11:28.

. . . is maybe 20 seconds.

The winner of the first points sprint in Patterson gets a free iPhone.

The three-man break has nearly a minute as riders try to jump out of the bunch in ones and twos.

. . . pardon us, to the sprint in Paterson.

. . . Martens on the back.

. . . Nydam slips to third.

Nydam had nothing. Not surprising after his efforts of yesterday.

Stephen Cozza (Slipstream) is one of them.

"We said piano and we meant it!"

Fuhgeddaboudit.

Up front, the break ticks along nicely.

The break - Paul Martens, Cyril Lemoine (Credit Agricole) and Scott Nydam (BMC Racing Team) - is cooperating nicely, trading pulls, as the bunch cruises along behind. Early days yet, as the saying goes.

. . . is now 1:20.

Up and down, up and down. Our legs get tired just watching.

Smiles all around, jackets and vests coming off.

. . . has topped three minutes.

It's the Cat. 4 Del Puerto Canyon Road at 40 miles in.

3:20 now.

. . . before tackling the big boy, Mt. Hamilton, just before the 60-mile point.

to Patrick O'Grady for covering the opening hour this morning. We're just about to make the switch, handing controls from one grumpy old man to another. Good on ya' O'Grady.

The gap has reached 5:00. Slipstream's Steven Cozza has joined up with the escapees and the foursome up front are moving along nicely. The addition of Cozza means that chasing duties will fall to CSC and teams other than Slipstream.

continues to improve today. We see plenty of blue sky. It's almost perfect bike racing weather. Cool, a bit of sun and, above all, dry.

Because the City of San Jose is worried about extended road closures, the race will be enforcing a ten-percent time cut at several points along today's route. Any riders that do not pass these locations in the specified time after the leader will not be allowed to continue.

1. Joseph Grant Park - 70.6 mi. - 20-24 min.

2. Alum Rock Road - 78.2 mi. - 22-27 min.

3. Sierra Road K.O.M. - 84.6 mi. - 25-30 min.

We have four riders - Steven Cozza Paul Martens, Cyril Lemoine (Credit Agricole) and Scott Nydam (BMC Racing Team) - holding a five-minute lead as the route heads to the day's first KOM mark, the Cat. 4 Del Puerto Canyon Road.

is setting tempo at the front of the field and keeping an eye on the break. There is no real sense of panic in the field, as Astana is just maintaining the gap and not letting the four escapees get more than the five minutes they have now.

are now five kilometers from the Del Puerto Canyon KOM. They are holding a 5:15 lead on the Astana-led peloton.

Nydam spent a long day on his own yesterday and we were surprised to see him join today's move. At least he has company today.

Are closing in on the KOM. We've been trying to figure out what Steven Cozza's new mustache reminds us of... we think he resembles a young Tom Ritchey, maybe.... or John Holmes. We're not sure.

The four men are in the final kilometer of the day's first climb. The summit is right at the 40 mile mark.

grabs top points on the Del Puerto Canyon climb. He's followed by Paul Maertens (Rabobank), Cyrill Lemoine (Credit Agricole) and Cozza brings up the rear.

crosses the KOM and comes across at just around 6:00. There is another Cat. 4 KOM at 50 miles, so riders get a bit of a break. The day's killer is the hors categorie climb up Mt. Hamilton, a new ascent for this race. It's apprently in the mid-30s on top of the climb and the fog has set in.

Our four leaders are five km from the San Antonio Road KOM, a Cat. 4 that hits at 2300 feet above sea level.

Just to look at the KOM picture this morning:

KOM. after stage 2

1. Jackson Stewart, BMC, 14 Pts.

2. Scott Nydam, BMC, 12 Pts.

3. Jonathan Sundt, Kelly Benefit Strategies-Medifast, 10 Pts.

4. Jens Voigt, CSC, 9 Pts.

5. Kevin Seeldraeyers*, Quickstep, 5 Pts.

6. Alexandre Moos, BMC, 4 Pts.

7. Christopher Horner, Astana, 3 Pts.

8. Jurgen Vandewalle, Quickstep, 1 Pts.

After the first KOM today, Nydam has moved to the top of that list, with another four points to his credit.

Our four leaders have loaded up with lunch and are heading toward the San Antonio climb. Race radio reports that Kevin Lacombe (Kelly Benefit Strategies) has been taken to the hospital. We're not sure what the rider's condition is.

gives our four leaders an advantage of 4:50.

And Nydam grabs the top points on this one, too. His breakaway companions seem content with his grabbing those points.

is still setting tempo at the front of the main field. Race radio reports there have already been a few riders spit off the back of the main field. Some of those guys are going to face trouble avoiding the mid-race time cuts.

has just lead the field over the San Antonio Valley Road KOM.

we haven't seen much from today is the man in the yellow jersey. Early morning reports from Ben Delaney is that Farrar has been suffering from the crud that seems to making the rounds in the little closed community of this bike race.

It looks like the yellow jersey has abandoned the race.

The four leaders have crested the day's third KOM. They get the short descent to rest and then they have Mt. Hamilton. Back in the field, CSC is sending two riders up the road on the Cat. 4... just trying to warm things up before the big climb.

Are on the lower slopes of Mt. Hamilton. There has been a big split in the main field and the CSC and Astana teams are fighting it out.

Maertens and Cozza have moved ahead of their two breakaway companions as the slope steepens.... Maertens is moving ahead as Cozza has a tough time holding his wheel.

Tyler Farrar sitting in the Slipstream car. He looks kinda green.

has clearly not been hit with the bug. He's flying up the climb. He's left Cozza behind.

has taken back control of the peloton. They have already swept up Cyril Lemoine and Scott Nydam. Only Cozza and Maertens remain up the road.

is driving hard on the climb. Leipheimer is tucked in around the fourth position. Our last time check gave Maertens just two minutes, with Cozza about 200 meters behind him.

Maertens is still up the road... but we don't know by how much.

is about to be swept up. He's about 25 seconds ahead of a strong group of 25, led by Astana.

We see Zabriskie, Hincapie, Danielson, Leipheimer, Millar and others in there. We'll try to get you a full run-down of the group ASAP.

Maertens is just a few meters ahead of the chase group.

Watch for a counter out of the group.

is at the front of the lead group. We have about 25 riders in this group. We see BMC has Moos in there. This group may stay intact over the summit. Given this climb's position on the stage, so the big sort-out may come on the Cat. 1 Sierra Road, which tops out at around 85 mles.

Word is that Kevin Lacombe (Kelly Benefit Strategies) is okay, but he's out of the race and at the hospital.

has drifted off the back... but he's close enough to catch back on through the descent, which is nearly 20 miles long. We could see some regrouping before Sierra Road.

This descent is long and technical. There are more than 160 turns on this drop. Hincapie has rejoined the lead group.

the leaders. One of them Janez Brajkovic (Astana) almost went off the road just now. He's back on and riding with Ben Jacques-Maynes who has been struggling to rejoin the lead group on the descent.

Janez Brajkovic has made it back on to the lead group as those riders hit the upward slope of a small bump on the ascent. Up front, Hincapie, is attacking off the front of the lead group.... indeed, he now has 45 seconds.

is powering along. Leipheimer is giving chase. He's at 45 seconds and the rest of the group is close behind Leipheimer.

is powering ahead and is holding a 45-second lead on Leipheimer and the rest of the chase group.

The men in the chase group are being led by five Astana riders, with four of them setting tempo for Leipheimer. Is Hincapie taking too much of a gamble on this one?

Is being led by Gusev, Janez Brajkovic, Chris Horner, Chechu Rubiera and then Levi Leipheimer. The Astanas certainly have the numerical advantage in this group.

The Astana-led chase group is nipping away at Hincapie's lead. He is now just 32 seconds ahead of the chase.

May be getting a bit of a boost here. He's very close to the camera moto.... which finally has pulled ahead.

We're seeing a bit of sun again. The roads remain nice and dry.

is holding on to his lead. He's going to have a tough time when the grade tips up. He's got some hungry Astana riders coming up on his heels.

Hincapie is 35 seconds ahead of the Astana boys. He is certainly holding his own. The Astanas are driving so hard they're gapping the rest of the group.

at least relatively flat. That means that Hincapie is heading to Sierra Road. Things will be shaking out on this last climb.

They can see him, but he's holding a 25 second lead.

Hincapie has 45 seconds. The chase group has grown to about 35 riders.

The road is tipping up and Hincapie is powering up the lower slopes of Sierra Road. The gap is still around 40 seconds.

Just as he passes the Big Hair SuperFan.

at the front. Chechu Rubiera and Chris Horner are setting tempo for Leipheimer. In there, too, is Victor Hugo Pena. Hincapie is fighting to keep contact.

It's a small group that has emerged at the front of the race. Up there are Zabriskie from Slipstream, Rubiera, Horner and Levi Leipheimer (Astana), Robert Gesink and Mauricio Ardila (Rabobank)... Hincapie is struggling and has drifted off the back.

It's the two Rabobanks at the front, with Leipheimer, Horner and Zabriskie

is working hard. Mauricio Ardila has just blown and now Robert Gesink is upping the tempo. Leipheimer is right on his wheel. Then comes Zabriskie and then Horner.

While this is a Cat. 1 climb, the roads are steeper than Mt. Hamilton.

Gesink is at the front and Leipheimer is with him. Horner and Zabriskie have been gapped.

as he and Leipheimer are putting a big effort. There's the dufus with the elk antlers.

Gesink is still riding at the front. Leipheimer is content to ride on the wheel of the much taller Rabobank man. Once over the top, it's 20 miles to the finish.

are nearing the top. They have a huge gap on the rest of the field.

Let's see who is up next and how far back they are.

cross at about 55 seconds. Zabriskie will get no help from Horner in this chase. This is the third year in a row that Leipheimer has crested this climb with the leaders. He must like this one, eh?

The two leaders are cooperating on the way off of the Sierra Road Climb. It seems unlikely that they will be caught, but we do know that David Millar was close to Zabriskie at the summit, so there may be an organized chase on the way to the finish in San Jose today.

is leading a big group of about 20 riders. We still need a time gap from that group up to Zabriskie.

Leipheimer and Gesink have about 1:00 on Horner and Zabriskie. Another 45 seconds back is a large group, currently led by Zabriskie's teammate David Millar.

It's 1:05 at last look.

shows that Gesink and Leipheimer are at 1:15.

is getting a bit larger. Zabriskie and Horner have company. The gap is down to about 45 seconds.

Millar is up there with him, and we see another Slipstream and few CSC, including Cancellara. They cannot afford to let Leipheimer get down the road, so they are really putting the hammer down. We also see Victor Hugo Pena. It's mostly the CSC and Slipstream riders putting in the big effort.

That's a lot of time trial power... and they are shutting the gap. It's just 30 seconds now. Who is in the group?

Gustav Larsson ( CSC)

Fabian Cancellara ( CSC)

Bobby Julich ( CSC)

Thomas Peterson (Slipstream)

David Millar (Slipstream)

David Zabriskie (Slipstream)

Christian Vandevelde (Slipstream)

Bernhard Kohl (Gerolsteiner)

Chris Horner (Astana)

José Luis Rubiera (Astana)

Jurgen Vandewalle (Quick Step)

Kevin Seeldraeyers (Quick Step)

Mauricio Ardila (Rabobank)

Alexandre Moos (BMC )

Victor Hugo Pena (Rock)

is getting a massive draft from the Rabobank rider. He's a little feller, so he's not offering much of a draft, even when he does pull to the front.

moves into the yellow jersey today, he owes it all to Gesink. Leipheimer is not pulling much today.

Leipheimer has moved to the front.... well for a bit. Gesink is back to pulling.

a time check. It looks like the gap is around 40 seconds or so, but there are about 12km to go.

puts it at 35 seconds. This is something of a drag race folks.

It looks like there are only about 4km remaining, so that 30 second gap may be insurmountable.

see the two leaders. That may offer inspiration. Team pursuit gents!

is driving hard. 3km to go and the gap is 20 seconds.

the gap is 18 seconds and the chasers are driving hard.

Leipheimer and Gesink are driving to the finish. If they finish 7 seconds ahead of the chasers, Leipheimer gets the jersey.

into the last turn. The chasers are closing.

The time has passed and Leipheimer gets the jersey. Wow.

1. Robert Gesink (Nl), Rabobank

2. Levi Leipheimer (USA), Astana

3. Jurgen Vandewalle (B), Quick Step

4. Kevin Seeldraeyers (B), Quick Step

5. Mauricio Ardila(Col), Rabobank

6. Thomas Peterson (USA), Slipstream

7. Christopher Horner (USA), Astana

8. Mauricio Alberto Ardila Cano (Col), Rabobank

9. Alexandre Moos (Swi), BMC

10. Victor Hugo Pena Grisales (Col), Rock Racing

We're coming up on the cut-off. There may be several riders who miss the time cut.

Check back soon to find out who made it, who didn't. Thanks for checking in with us today and a special thanks to my old buddy for lending a hand early in the day. See you tomorrow.