Looking back: Kitty O'Neil's Record

It was on this day (Dec. 6) in 1976 that professional stuntwoman Kitty O'Neil set a record for land speed by a female driver.

It was in Oregon's Alvord Desert that Kitty hit 512 miles per hour. Her women's absolute land speed record stood until 2019. The previous record had been 321 mph.

Childhood diseases left her deaf and nearly killed her. She became a champion diver at a young age. As a teenager, she planned to take part in the 1964 Olympics but an injury and illness cut those dreams short. She learned to race motorcycles, boats and sports cars.

Her work later as a Hollywood stuntwoman was featured in TV shows like Quincy, Baretta and The Bionic Woman along with movies like Smokey and the Bandit, The Blues Brothers and Airport '77.

She set a record for the highest stunt fall by a woman (105 feet) for an episode of Wonder Woman. She has held as many as 22-speed records on land and water.

A movie was made about her life in 1979 titled Silent Victory: The Kitty O'Neil Story. She died Nov. 2, 2018, from pneumonia at the age of 72. Read more about her amazing life in a Washington Post article here. Below is a video report on Kitty from the Midco Sports Network put together in 2015.