Boulder, Colo.-based cycling team Garmin-Sharp-Barracuda owns a 17-second lead over RadioShack-Nissan in the USA Pro Cycling Challenge, heading into Wednesday's Stage 3, a 210-km race from Gunnison to Aspen.

Garmin-Sharp-Barracuda's Tyler Farrar won Stage 1 Monday, but fell off at the end of Stage 2 Tuesday, finishing 4:39 off the leader, Tejay van Garderen (BMC).

Garmin-Sharp-Barracuda got a strong ride from Christian Vande Velde, who finished just behind van Garderen. The team is positioned well for the race's longest stage, thanks in part to Farrar's victory and Vande Velde's first and second place finishes.

Early in Stage 2, it looked as if Alex Howes may compete at the end after making an early sprint. He led by five minutes at one point, but ran out of steam down the stretch, finishing 26 seconds behind van Garderen.

RadioShack-Nissan is competitive in the team competition, looking for Americans Matthew Busche and Christopher Horner (12th and 15th in Stage 2, respectively) to keep pace with surging Garmin-Sharp.