After a stage in the lead at the Tour of Virginia, Russ Langley gave up the general classification leader’s jersey to Team Caico’s Javier Zapata of Colombia after stage 3 Wednesday.

Zapata, down six seconds heading into the third stage, rode clear from an early breakaway on the 110-mile stage through the Alleghany Highlands, the first true road race and the longest of the seven-stage tour. Heading up the Cat 1. Warms Springs Mountain, Zapata launched himself off the front and didn’t look back.

Zapata came into stage 3 in 11th place overall after a tough performance in stage 2, a 25-mile criterium in downtown Lynchburg.

“We knew the first day would be difficult,” Team Caico manager Jorge Romero said. “Criteriums are not common in the Caribbean and Colombia, so many of our riders weren’t used to the high speeds and cornering involved in the race.” The second stage, set on a 1-mile circuit, was won by Alejandro Borrajo (Rite Aid Pro Cycling) in a group sprint.

“With about two laps to go, we stretched the bunch out,” said Aussie Jonathan Cantwell (Kahala-La Grange), who placed third in the sprint. “Once the race sped up, it was left to whoever had the best legs of the day.”

Borrajo, Cantwell and the former race leader Langley (Battley Harley-Davidson – Hudson Trail) couldn’t hang on as the first day of climbing started. But Borrajo, who is riding in a support role for Rite Aid, was able to hold on to second place in GC, 58 seconds behind Zapata.

Romero said Team Caico is strategizing on how to keep Zapata in yellow. “We’re here to fight for the whole thing,” he said.

Stage 4 will be another long test to the climbing legs of the riders. The 103-mile trek from Hot Springs to Waynesboro will feature three Cat. 1 and two Cat. 3 climbs. The race will pass through the steep slopes of Reed’s Gap, formerly a favorite spot of the now-defunct Tour DuPont.

---

2007 TOUR OF VIRGINIAStage 2 (criterium). April 24
1. Alejandro Borrajo, Rite Aid , 25 miles in 49:51
2. Eudaldo Asencio, Caico
3. Jonathan Cantwell, Kahala-La Grange
4. Javier Zapata, Caico
5. Kayle Leogrande, Rock Racing
6. Buck Miller, Team Race
7. Alexander Gonzalez, Caico
8. Eddy Hilger, Priority Health-Bissell
9. Brian Buchholz, UVA
10. Predrag Prokic, AEG-Toshiba-Jet Network, all s.t.
 Stage 3 (road race). April 25
1. Javier Zapata, Caico 110 miles in 4:33:21
2. Alejandro Borrajo,  Rite Aid Pro Cycling, at 0:51
3. Christopher Jones, VMG Racing, at 0:51
4. Dominique Perras, Kelly Benefit Strategies-Medifast, at 0:53
5. Andrew Guptil, Colavita-Sutter Home, at 0:54
6. Dan Bowman, Kelly Benefit Strategies-Medifast
7. Predrag Prokic, AEG-Toshiba-Jet Network
8. Alejandro Cortes, Caico
9. Mike Olheiser, Memphis Motorwerks-Carve, all s.t.
10. Daniel Vaillancourt, Colavita-Sutter Home, at 0:55.Overall, after 3 stages
1. Javier Zapata, Caico, at 5:31:13
2. Alejandro Borrajo, Rite Aid Pro Cycling, at 0:58
3. Christopher Jones, VMG Racing, at 1:11
4. Dominique Perras, Kelly Benefit Strategies-Medifast, at 1:13
5. Mike Olheiser, Memphis Motorwerks-Carve, at 1:23
6. Predrag Prokic, AEG-Toshiba-Jet Network, at 1:28
7. Alejandro Cortes, Caico, at 1:31
8. Daniel Vaillancourt, Colavita-Sutter Home, at 1:44
9. Andrew Guptil, Colavita-Sutter Home, at 2:01
10. Eddy Hilger, Priority Health-Bissell, at 2:40