![Main fundraiser photo](https://images.gofundme.com/fHzm7bvsXECRScm2LW-uyzxdn2o=/720x405/https://d2g8igdw686xgo.cloudfront.net/79680715_1713916956219605_r.jpeg)
CRANKSHAFT CULTURE RAISING FUNDS FOR JESSI COMBS FOUNDATION
Donation protected
We're going global! Andy and I are competing in the 2024 Baltic Sea Circle Rally , the northernmost rally in the world! It spans nine countries, 16 days, and 7,500 kilometers. And, we're doing it in an all-electric Volkswagen ID. Buzz van. ️
A key component of this rally is raising money for charity. We’ve chosen the Jessi Combs Foundation (JCF), an organization that's very important to us. Please consider a donation to our Go Fund Me for this worthy cause. We'd like to raise at least $1,000 dollars for JCF. Honestly, we’d love to blow past that amount and collect a lot more for them. FYI, 100% of the collected money goes to JCF (this isn’t to fund our trip). We have less than 60 days to do this!
WHO WAS JESSI COMBS?
Jessi Combs was a talented welder, fabricator, off-road racer, and prominent TV personality. She was also a fearless, compassionate, and down-to-earth woman who dedicated her life to making a difference in the automotive trades. She pushed boundaries every chance she got and made the impossible possible. She took the time to positively affect countless women, young girls, and many other people while making her dreams a reality.
Jessi left us too soon on Aug. 27, 2019, perishing in a land speed record attempt accident. However, she was posthumously credited by the Guinness Book of World Records as the fastest woman on Earth, achieving the record at 522.783 MPH, a record that hadn’t been broken for 40 years until Jessi did so.
THE JESSI COMBS FOUNDATION
The JCF’s mission is to educate, inspire, and empower the next generation of female trailblazers and stereotype-breakers. The guiding principle is the simple question “What Would Jessi Do?”
The foundation distributes individual scholarships and in-kind partner donations to educational institutions and learning centers to continually be a driving force behind the next generation of female tradespeople. The foundation uses its voice to shine light on those whose achievements, talents, and art inspires others. Grants and scholarships are the primary tools to support the efforts of events or attempted achievements that align with the barrier-smashing attitude Jessi embodied.
PLEASE CONSIDER DONATING
We want to do our part to help the Jessi Combs Foundation encourage other women. Andy and I want to help them excel in non-traditional careers in the automotive trades, taking chances on new paths, and to retain resiliency to forge ahead and face challenges head on by raising funds for JCF.
OUR EUROPEAN RALLY
We’re pushing ourselves beyond our comfort zone by traveling through several countries we’ve never visited, experiencing languages we don’t know, and by driving an all-electric vehicle during this 16-day, nine-country, and 7,500-kilometer-long competition.
This isn't your typical time-speed-distance or TSD competition, but rather a map-and-compass road rally that takes teams through beautiful back roads while witnessing stunning scenery as we're faced with daily challenges and missions. NO GPS or navigation is allowed. The rally will take us through Germany, Denmark, Sweden, Norway, Finland, Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania, and Poland.
Unlike a TSD rally where the rallymaster dictates the exact route you need to stay on, you're on your own when choosing this course. The rally organization doesn't give you a specific route that you must follow. The suggested roadbook route is merely a guideline, but not mandatory.
Daily challenges must be solved in the best possible way until teams reach the finish line. The rally org says, "creativity and a talent for improvisation are key here." We’re eager to dive right in!
Stay tuned, tons more coming as we prepare for this rally. It'll be the challenge of a lifetime! Thanks to those of you who will donate, we appreciate you and you’ll have a positive effect on women in the automotive trades.
Organizer
![](https://images.gofundme.com/_UJnZtyKmOr6O8DMvgjP8kuWZGU=/128x128/https://www.gofundme.com/person/profiles/aff2a0733b71437da4c2bcece60f628b_edited_photo_1714192985135.jpeg)
Mercedes Lilienthal
Organizer
Portland, OR