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Jessi Combs Crash Caused by Front Wheel Hitting "Object on the Desert"

In August this year, television personality, builder, racer and inventor Jessi Combs was killed in an attempt to set a new land-speed record in the Alvord Desert in Oregon.
Jessi Combs' jet-car crashed because the front wheel assembly gave out after hitting unknown object 4 photos
Photo: bgr.com
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The investigation into the cause of the fatal accident has concluded, and the findings have made their way online. TMZ says that the Harney County Sheriff’s Office has ruled that Combs died because of a mechanical failure with her jet-powered car, which led to complete and total loss of control over it.

The investigation was particularly lengthy because of the damage to the car: not only did it crash, but it went up in flames, so authorities were left with just a pile of steaming metal once they were able to put the fire out. The conclusion is that Combs hit an unknown object with the front wheel on her North American Eagle Super Sonic Speed Challenger, which made the entire assembly give out.

This happened as she had reached speeds of 550 mph, so the consequences were disastrous. The same report notes that Combs’ cause of death is blunt force trauma to the head and that she died immediately.

"Based on the evidence collected and examined at the scene of the crash and the evidence recovered by the North American Race Team it appears that there was a mechanical failure of the front wheel, most likely caused from striking an object on the desert," a statement from the Harney County Sheriff’s Office reads.

"The front wheel failure led to the front wheel assembly collapsing. The front wheel failure occurred at speeds approaching 550 miles per hour."

Combs was at the wheel of her jet-powered car, which she had driven before, to set a personal record of 440 mph. Right on the day of the crash, she had posted to social media about her latest attempt to set a new world record, which would have made her the fastest woman on Earth, stripping the current title-holder, Kitty O’Neil, of the honor. She hit 512.7 mph in 1976 and her performance has been unrivaled since.

Combs died in the attempt, but it may still win her the Guinness title of the world’s fastest woman. In September, the Petersen Automotive Museum in Los Angeles hosted a Jessi Combs exhibit, Jessi Combs: Life at Full Speed, which honored her work and her team announced there that they would list her for the title.

To set a new Guinness World record for speed, one has to top the previous record on 2 consecutive runs. According to Combs’ team, she was able to do that before she crashed, reaching 515.346 mph and 548.432 mph, respectively. Combs’ average of 531.889 mph puts her above O’Neil and could earn her the much-coveted title, if the Guinness Book of World Records agrees.
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About the author: Elena Gorgan
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Elena has been writing for a living since 2006 and, as a journalist, she has put her double major in English and Spanish to good use. She covers automotive and mobility topics like cars and bicycles, and she always knows the shows worth watching on Netflix and friends.
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