Debbi Young, senior executive-Systems Integration & Technology, likes to go fast. How fast? Oh, about zero to 150 miles per hour in less than 10 seconds.

Not only is it exceedingly rare to find a woman racing hot rods, it’s rarer still to find one who is also an Accenture senior executive. Yet for 25 years, Debbi has been doing just that. These days she competes in the Super Gas division of the National Hot Rod Association (NHRA) in her souped-up, 625-horsepower, 2003 Firebird Roadster.

“When I started out, I got a lot of attention for being the only girl,” Debbi recalled. “Even today, out of 80 or 100 competitors, there are maybe one or two other females in the Super Gas category.”

Debbi took her first foray into racing in 1983, dabbling in what she calls “drive to work” cars, which are, essentially, modified street cars. But her need for speed kept increasing, and her cars kept getting faster.

The NHRA’s Super Gas class features production or roadster-style cars, often with full fenders, hoods, grilles, tops, windshields and working doors. Racers face off two at a time, competing against each other and the clock. The goal is to get from start to finish, going a quarter-mile in 9.90 seconds or slower, while beating one’s opponent to the finish line.

“If I go faster than 9.90 seconds, I lose to my competitor, unless they go faster than I do,” Debbi explained. "It’s as much about a racer’s timing and strategy as the performance of the car. Racers have to take many things into account, such as temperature, track conditions and humidity."

Debbi’s unusual hobby has drawn the attention of colleagues and clients alike. Some of her Accenture colleagues have even been out to see her race at the drag strip in Joliet, Illinois, just south of Chicago.

“I haven’t met any other female senior executives who are into drag racing, but I’ve met a lot of people who are into cars, and sometimes my clients have hobbies related to racing,” Debbi said. Her next big competition is the U.S. Nationals—“kind of like the Super Bowl of drag racing”—in Indianapolis, Indiana, at the end of August.

To use an obvious pun, what drives her to do it? “I’m super competitive, and it’s a great outlet for me,” Debbi says. “When I race, I get that out of my system.”

She also finds that the sport keeps her modest.

“You typically win or lose by less than five one-hundredths of a second, so you need a lot of lucky breaks to be successful,” she said. “Sometimes you run a really good race, but your opponent runs a little bit better. You can get humbled pretty fast.”