| Leilani Maaja Münter | |
|---|---|
Race Car Driver Leilani Münter |
|
| Nationality | American |
| Born | February 18, 1976 Rochester, Minnesota |
| 2012 ARCA Series | |
| Debut season | 2010 |
| Current team | Mark Gibson Racing |
| Car no. | 59 |
| Starts | 1 |
| Wins | 0 |
| Poles | 0 |
| Best finish | 4th in 2006 |
| Previous series | |
| 2001-2007 | Indy Pro Series, ARCA Series, NASCAR Elite Division, ASA, NASCAR Late Models, Allison Legacy |
Leilani Münter (born on February 18, 1976) is an American race car driver and environmental activist. She drives in the ARCA Racing Series, and previously drove in the Firestone Indy Lights, the development league of IndyCar. Prior to her debut in open wheel racing, she was a stock car driver in the NASCAR Elite division. She was born and raised in Rochester, Minnesota, earned a degree in Biology in San Diego, California, and currently lives in Cornelius, North Carolina.
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Prior to becoming a race car driver, Münter earned a bachelor's degree in biology, specializing in ecology, behavior, and evolution from the University of California, San Diego. During her college years, Münter was also a volunteer at a wildlife rescue and rehabilitation center.
Münter began racing in California in 2001 in the Allison Legacy Series. She debuted with a seventh place finish. In 2002 Münter made the move to Mooresville, North Carolina, widely regarded as the center for NASCAR racing. In 2003 she had her first start in the NASCAR Weekly Racing Series at South Boston Speedway, she finished ninth. She made her first speedway start in 2004 at Texas Motor Speedway and set a new record when she qualified fourth, the highest qualifying effort for a female driver at the track. It was also her first super late model race; she finished seventh. In 2006 she had her first full-time season in a race car. In just her fifth race of the season, she had one of the biggest races of her career when she finished fourth, setting a new record at Texas Motor Speedway for the highest finish for a female driver in the history of the 1.5 mile speedway. Later that year, Leilani became the first woman to qualify in the 45 year history of the Bettenhausen Classic at Illiana Speedway in Indiana. In 39 stock car starts, Münter scored 19 top tens and 9 top five finishes. She finished running 92% of the time. At the end of the 2006 racing season, she was set to make the move into the ARCA Series in 2007, a stepping stone series into NASCAR's top three series. In December 2006 she completed her ARCA rookie test at Daytona International Speedway. She was 24th quick of 59 race cars testing that day in a race car prepared by Andy Hillenburg, a retired driver who owns Fast Track Racing School, where Münter once worked at as an instructor. Shortly after her Daytona test Münter received a phone call from an Indy team to ask if she was interested in racing open wheel cars. By May 2007 she had completed her Indy Pro rookie test and made the move to open wheel racing. She got back in a stock car in December 2008, testing an ARCA car at Daytona International Speedway for NASCAR Sprint Cup driver James Hylton. In December 2009, she returned to ARCA testing at Daytona, driving the #59 NextEra Energy Resources Dodge for Mark Gibson Racing. In the final practice, Münter posted the 7th quickest lap with a speed of 181.77 mph, just 69 one-thousandths of a second behind Danica Patrick, who posted the 5th quickest time of the final practice. Patrick and Münter drafted with each other throughout the weekend. The two female drivers had previously worked together off the racetrack, in an ad campaign together in 2006 and 2007 for Hostess.
In 2007 Münter became the fourth woman in history to compete in the Indy Pro Series, the development league of IndyCar. In May, Münter passed her Indy Pro Series rookie test at Kentucky Speedway. In August she inked a deal with three time championship team Sam Schmidt Motorsports. She qualified 5th for her debut at Kentucky Speedway on August 11. She had trouble on a restart and dropped back to 13th but raced her way back to the front of the field. She passed five cars in a lap and a half and turned in the fifth-fastest lap of the race with a speed of 192.399 mph. She was about to pass for fourth place when she was involved in a multi-car accident. Four-time Indy 500 champion Rick Mears, IndyCar driver Jaques Lazier, and many others in the IndyCar community spoke very highly of Münter after her debut. Münter's current plans include both a return to the Indy Pro Series and the ARCA Re/Max Series, a development league in NASCAR.
Münter's accomplishments have landed her on the pages of USA Today, New York Times, Italian Vogue, Esquire, ESPN, Men's Journal, Newsweek, Glamour, Reader's Digest, Vanity Fair, Washington Post, and Sports Illustrated named her one of the top ten female race car drivers in the world. Glamour Magazine named her an "Eco Hero." In 2010 Discovery's Planet Green named her the #1 Eco Athlete, beating out Lance Armstrong for the top spot. She was profiled on Discovery Planet Green's new 2010 television series "Fast Forward." She has also been featured on DIY, ESPN, Fashion TV, National Geographic, NBC Sports, and Spike TV. Münter has also appeared as a model for Lucky Brand Jeans and appeared in ads for the brand in Vogue, Vanity Fair, In Style, and W Magazine as well as in Lucky Brand Stores across the country. Münter spent three years as a special correspondent for NASCAR.com and was one of three "Hostess Race Divas" to appear on boxes of Hostess Twinkies and Cupcakes - alongside IRL's Danica Patrick and NHRA's Melanie Troxel. The ad campaign for Hostess was significant because it was the first time the bakery has featured athletes on their products since professional baseball players were featured in the 1980s.
Münter holds a bachelor degree in biology from the University of California, San Diego and is a long time vegetarian. She once worked as a photo double for Catherine Zeta-Jones. In 1999 her sister Natascha married Bob Weir, singer and guitarist of the rock band The Grateful Dead. On March 17, 2009 Münter married Craig Davidson in a seaside wedding on New Zealand's Cathedral Cove beach.
Münter is well known for speaking out about environmental issues. She blogs in the green section of the Huffington Post and is very active in the fight for environmental legislation.
In 2006, Münter started a section on her racing website dedicated to environmental news. She now hosts an eco-site called Carbon Free Girl, where she documents her efforts to become carbon neutral and discusses environmental issues and clean energy. She also has a blog where she is known to speak out about green issues. In 2007, Münter made the commitment to adopt an acre of endangered tropical rainforest for protection from World Land Trust to offset her carbon footprint from the race.
In March 2008 Münter went to Capitol Hill with the National Wildlife Federation to speak with members of Congress on behalf of the Climate Security Act. During her visit Senator Elizabeth Dole called Münter "a woman on a mission." That summer, Münter spoke at a rally in Capitol Hill alongside Senator Barbara Boxer, Senator John Kerry, and Senator Joe Lieberman in support of the Climate Security Act. When asked to comment on her environmental activities, Frank O'Donnell (President of the Clean Air Watch) told the Washington Post "I thing it's a fantastic thing."
The Indy Car Series runs on 100% ethanol and Münter has talked on her blog about the need for NASCAR to make the switch to a renewable clean energy source. Münter graduated from the University of California San Diego where she earned a Bachelors Degree in Biology specializing in Ecology, Behavior, and Evolution. She is also a long time vegetarian.[1][2]
In February 2009 Münter climbed to the top of a wind turbine at Horse Hollow Wind Energy Center in Abilene, Texas and autographed one of the blades. The turbine was consequently nicknamed "Leilani" by its owner, NextEra Energy Resources. Later that same year, Münter signed a solar panel at NextEra Energy's SEGS in the Mojave Desert, the largest solar thermal energy center in the world.
Also in February 2009 Münter met musician Jack Johnson, who later that same year gave Münter permission to use his music with her slideshow about her mission to bring environmental awareness to the racing world. View Leilani's Eco Slideshow with music by Jack Johnson
Münter spoke on a panel discussion on creative activism with actress Daryl Hannah at Powershift 2009 in Washington, D.C.
In May 2009 Münter went to Norway to participate in the zero emission Viking Rally, driving a hydrogen fuel cell Ford Focus which has only harmless emissions of water and heat. Münter finished second in the hill-climb, just behind World Rally driver Hennig Solberg. Münter drank the water from the exhaust of the vehicle at the 24th annual Electric, Fuel Cell and Hybrid Vehicle Symposium and Exhibition in Stavanger, Norway.
In 2010, Münter was named by Discovery Channel's Planet Green Network as the #1 Eco Athlete; Lance Armstrong was rated #5. She was also featured in the new TV series Fast Forward on Planet Green, which profiled her environmental efforts in racing.
Münter was one of the first celebrity activists to visit the BP Oil Spill; she arrived in Venice, Louisiana on May 2, ten days after the Deepwater Horizon sank to the bottom of the Gulf of Mexico, the same day President Barack Obama arrived. She spent a week at the spill, documenting her experience there.
On July 13, 2010, Münter returned and toured the oil-stained areas of Louisiana devastated by the BP Oil Spill as part of a Sierra Club sponsored event involving 10 current and former athletes which included tennis star Chanda Rubin, Olympic skier Stacey Cook and NFL stars Ovie Mughelli and Mike Alstott.[3]
In 2010, Münter became involved in the fight against the dolphin slaughter in Taiji, Japan and became a volunteer for Save Japan Dolphins. She has said publicly that immediately after watching the Academy Award winning documentary The Cove, that the first words out of her mouth when the movie ended to her husband was, "We have to go to Taiji and help Ric end this." Within a year, on September 2, 2010 Münter stood in Tokyo, next to dolphin activist Ric O'Barry who is featured in the movie, to deliver a petition signed by 1.7 million people from 151 countries asking for the dolphin slaughter to end. She returned to Taiji, Japan again for two weeks in October 2010 and documented two dolphin slaughters while she was there. She has stated she will continue to return to The Cove until the slaughter has ended. Münter recorded a video from Taiji for the project One Day on Earth on 10/10/10.