I think you have that reversed. I might say something like "Long before cars were invented people rode horses to get around." and if for instance I was going somewhere on a trip I might say, "Before long we'll be pulling into Omaha (a city)". So 'long before' indicates a period in the past that occurred before something else, 'before long' means 'in the near future'.

Before long implies the past and a longer period of time and long before implies the future for a short period of time