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South Jordan • Alise Post took some time to rest inside the Redline Racing trailer after her first race of the day at the Great Salt Lake BMX Nationals, sipping on a bottle of Pedialyte as the temperature outside rose to 90 degrees.
Post, the USA BMX Series national champion and USA Cycling national champion, wore earrings in the shape of her first name and a jersey themed with the colors of the American flag.
Fitting, as a little more than two months from now, she'll be racing as a member of the U.S. Olympic BMX team in Rio de Janeiro.
"We've been coming to Salt Lake pretty much annually for a long time," Post said. "It's always a good track, it's a bit longer than some, so you're burning a little bit by the end of the lap."
The 25-year-old is headed to her second Olympic Games, after an experience in London four years ago she'd like to forget.
On the final straightaway of her last semifinal heat, Post crashed and was helped off the track and through the finish line by officials.
"It was the worst thing that could have ever happened," Post said. "I just had the worst race I've had in a very long time, it really can't go any further downhill from there."
The past
BMX is still a relatively young Olympic sport, added in 2008, when Donny Robinson, who lost in the semifinals of his race category Saturday, won a bronze medal in Beijing.
Robinson, now on his self-described "retirement tour," finds himself as an ambassador to a sport still finding its place in the Olympic world.
"We as BMX racers, I don't know that we're fully accepted into the Olympic movement," Robinson said. "We never will be. We are a very unique sport and don't quite fit into the X-Games or in the Olympics."
Still, he says BMX is "leaps and bounds more professional and intense" eight years on — the world catching up to what the U.S. started — and that the riding community expects to find Post on the podium this summer.
"We always look forward to big things from Alise," Robinson said. "Always have, always will."
The future
Sophia Foresta, 16, started her BMX career as a 5-year-old, an age most kids can't imagine life after training wheels.
She rides four days a week and in six to eight competitive races around the country per year from January to November.
"It has become a lifestyle because I enjoy it. If I didn't enjoy it, it would be really tough, but every day I come out to the track or the gym it's because I'm having fun," Foresta said. "I love what I do."
Foresta — ranked as the No. 1 USA BMX national girl rider — lives just a few miles from Rad Canyon, carrying her home track advantage to a win in her age group Saturday.
Next up: Pushing for her own Olympic berth and hopefully turning pro.
"I may be a little off to get to 2020 and you never know, but it's my goal and I've wanted to do that ever since I was a little kid," Foresta said. "Who doesn't want to be in the Olympics, really? That would be the best thing ever. We're going for it."
The present
Post added the Women's Elite title Saturday to her bulging trophy case, coasting to the finish line well past her nearest competitor.
The only trophy that's eluded her so far is Olympic gold, a drought she plans to end in Rio on her personal redemption tour after London's disappointment.
"There's no reason that I can't be on the podium in Rio," Post said.
Twitter: @BrennanJSmith