Kendall Achen has found her happy place, and it's flying down an icy track, flat on her back on a sled.

Kendall, 11, is a sixth-grade student at Manheim Central Middle School. She was recently named to the USA Luge Jr. National Development Team and has big plans for her future in the sport of luge. "I want to compete in the 2030 Olympics," said Kendall, the daughter of Stacy and Mike Achen of Manheim.

Kendall became interested in the sport after watching her cousin Erin Hamlin compete. "She won the singles bronze medal at the Olympics in Sochi in 2014," Kendall noted. Hamlin, a four-time Olympian, became the first female American luger to medal at any winter Olympics and the first American of either gender to medal in luge singles competition.

USA Luge finds its team through "slider searches" throughout the United States and then brings the top contenders to screening camp. Kendall's brothers, Alec and Gavin, had participated in USA Luge slider searches and screening camp, but neither progressed as far as Kendall.

After competing at a slider search in Utica, N.Y., in September of 2019, Kendall was selected to attend a screening camp in Lake Placid, N.Y., in January of 2020.

"We didn't give it much thought after she did the screening camp. If nothing came of it, we thought, 'Well, it was a great opportunity,'" Stacy recalled. Then on May 1, 2020, they found out Kendall had made the team.

The "development" team is the lowest rung on the ladder of teams to progress to the USA Luge Olympic team, so it provides plenty of room for Kendall to grow.

She travels about once a month to Lake Placid to train and said she never gets tired of sliding. "I love all of it," Kendall noted. "I like flying down the track. I like how fast you go."

She's working on improving her turns and avoiding crashes, which happen frequently in the sport. In fact, she had her first crash earlier this year. Luckily, it was minor.

Despite the risks of the sport, Stacy encourages her daughter to pursue her passion. "I want her to find her niche, and this is something she really loves," she stated.

Like many sports, luge is expensive, and USA Luge has set up a fundraising page, http://bit.ly/KendallAchen, to help the family cover the cost of Kendall's participation. "She has to purchase the team jacket, the podium hat, the helmet, the face shield, the gloves," Stacy said, adding that travel to and from Lake Placid also adds to the cost.

When she's not on the track, Kendall stays busy with soccer, cheerleading and gymnastics.

"I try to make sure I go to all of my gymnastic activities and keep up with my fitness so I can stay healthy," she said. And stay focused on 2030, when Kendall just may find herself on the medal podium.