JESSI COMBS: ONE YEAR LATER

STORY: WENDY WOHLFORD PHOTOS: SHAUN OCHSNER & JESSI COMBS FOUNDATION

Fastest Woman on Earth is a title not many dare to aspire to be, but to this amazing woman, this was her goal. Jessi Combs was a force to be reckoned with. She was a record breaker, pro racer, TV personality and metal fabricator. Jessi has a legacy that resonates loudly within the racing community. Those that knew and loved her grieve as we approach the one-year mark of her untimely passing. No stranger to speed, Jessi lived for it, and was not shy about making that known.

In 2013, Jessi drove The North American Eagle Supersonic Speed Challenger right through the previous 48-year-old record coming in at 398.954 mph for the official run and 440.709 for her top speed. Defeating the previous record Jessi earned the title “Fastest Woman on Four Wheels”. Not content with breaking just one record, Jessi then went on to break her own record in 2016 with a new top speed of just over 477 mph. To have these feats on one’s resume of achievements is impressive, but Jessi was not done yet.

In addition to breaking land speed records, Jessi also made a name for herself as a pro racer in off-road. In 2014, she placed first in the spec class at the King of the Hammers, making her the first woman at any Ultra 4 event to place on the podium. Not stopping there, she went on to place first at the Ultra 4 Western Regional Series and National Championship. Jessi also placed 2nd in Class 7 at the 2016 SCORE Baja 1000 and earned another first-place spot at KOH in the EMC Modified Class with the Savvy Off Road Team that year.

In 2017, Jessi set out to Ironwoman the 50th Baja 1000 as a solo driver– meaning she would run the entire course with no replacement drivers. Unfortunately, a mechanical failure would end her race, half way down the peninsula. Jessi Combs was not just known and loved for speed and racing skills; she was also an admired female TV personality.

She was a host on the show Xtreme 4x4 on Spike TV until she suffered a spinal injury in 2007 that should have left her paralyzed. In true Jessi fashion, that just was not going to work for her. Beating the odds, Jessi made a full recovery, but ultimately decided to part from the Xtreme 4x4 show. Adding to her on-screen repertoire, she went on to co-host All Girls Garage and the 2011 return of Overhaulin, along with a dozen appearances on Mythbusters and a handful of other TV shows where she could show off her impeccable and almost artistic metal fabrication skills.

One summer day Jessi set out with one goal, to break the record of the current “Fastest Woman on Earth”, a title that at the time was held by Kitty O’Neil for over 40 years after O’Neil hit the record setting speed of 512.7 mph in 1976. On August 27th 2019, on a dry lake bed in Oregon, Jessi Combs achieved an incredible triumph followed by an unimaginable accident. A mechanical frontwheel failure led to the heartbreaking loss of Jessi Combs. In June 2020, The Guinness Book Of World Records officially announced that during Jessi’s two opposite runs across the lake bed, she averaged a speed of just over 522.7 mph, beating out Kitty’s previous record of 512.7 mph and posthumously earning her the title of “Fastest Woman on Earth”.

In honor of her memory The Jessi Combs Foundation was established in September 2019. The mission of the foundation is to inspire and educate a new generation of women who are eager to follow in Jessi’s fearless, trailblazing footsteps. As Jessi Combs said just days before her passing said “It may seem a little crazy to walk directly into the line of fire…those who are willing, are those who achieve great things. People say I’m crazy. I say thank you”.