Liz Reap Carlson of Jim Thorpe won the National Track Cycling Championship in the 500-meter time trial. This is the fifth Elite National Championship for Carlson, a member of the 2008 U.S. Olympic Cycling's long team.

On Sept. 30, six national titles were awarded on day two of the 2010 USA Cycling Elite Track National Championships at the Home Depot Center Velodrome in Carson, Calif.In the women's event, Carlson, pedaling with the Classic Cycling Essentials, was victorious after covering the 500 meters with a time of 36.878, nearly two seconds ahead of second-place finisher Dana Feiss of Telford, with the CPT-Home Depot Center Team, who posted a 37.008. Christin Walker of Houston, Texas with the Momentum Coaching Group, rode to the podium's third step, while Jen Featheringill from Portland, Ore. with Bike Central, and Madalyn Godby from Louisville, Colo. with Rocky Mounts-Izze Racing, were fourth and fifth respectively.Carlson was one of 35 cyclists named in 2008 to USA Cycling's Long Team, which includes the disciplines of mountain bike, track and women's road cycling, and is a term used in the bicycling sport to describe the talent pool of cyclists from whose ranks the USA Cycling Olympic team is selected.Carlson was one of only two sprinters on the Long Team. On a tight budget, the U.S. Olympic team chose to enter only one sprinter, and Carlson, a sprinter, ultimately finished second, missing her chance to compete in Beijing.This latest win is quite a feather in the cap of the 40-year-old cyclist by Olympic standards. She only became interested in bicycling when she was 27, and didn't compete until she was over 30 on the senior circuit. Yet, she predicted in 2008, "If I don't make the Olympics this year then in 2012. I'm only getting better.""Quite honestly, I am," she explained. "It's all in the attitude and how you approach it. It is a paradigm shift in the way you approach your life."Carlson has competed around the globe at venues such as: the Sidney, Australia World Cup in November 2007; and the Beijing, China World Cup in December 2007. The events drew 400 cyclists."The best in the world came out to compete," Carlson said.In Beijing, Carlson raced at the new Olympic stadium. Upon arrival at the Laoshan Velodrome at 10 p.m. after 13 hours of travel, Carlson walked about, taking a deep breath and said, "Wow, I'm in an Olympic Velodrome and preparing to compete."She was very excited."It is smaller than a football stadium, but it has that presence the presence of an Olympic facility," she said."I did well," she said. "I matched my personal record in the 200 meters. I ended up 24th in the sprints, 13th in the 500-meter time trial, and 17th in the Keiren, a sprint cycling event."Carlson races on a "really beautiful carbon fiber bike designed by Tschner. I borrowed a pair of carbon fiber wheels. I don't own a pair but I'm hoping to get a pair through sponsorship."Competing for the Olympics is expensive and it's a full-time job."I've sacrificed my income in order to compete. I literally can't work. It is a full-time job to compete at the world-class level," she said.Area businesses and organizations, as they begin to learn about Carlson's successes, have begun to offer help. She has received a gym membership at Healthworks in Lehighton. For a fundraiser during the Jim Thorpe birthday celebration, these businesses donated prizes for a raffle: the Inn at Jim Thorpe, JTAMS, Natures Trail, Mary's Guest House, the Treasure Shop, and the Old Jail Museum."I didn't aim for the Olympic Games but just focusing on doing my best and doing everything it takes to get there, I've made it into that class of athletes. I'm very proud and grateful and excited. It's pretty cool."To follow Liz Reap Carlson's competitions, see her blog at:

lizreapcarlson.wordpress.com. To help support Liz Reap Carlson's quest for the 2012 Olympics, contact her at:

info@lizreap.com, or call (570) 657-6847.