My Race to Save the Planet by Leilani Münter
October 7, 2008
The latest issue of ESPN the Magazine describes me as “an oxymoron: a tree hugging race car driver.” I am an avid environmentalist — I have a degree in biology, I am a former volunteer of a wildlife rehabilitation center and a long time vegetarian. I recently became politically active in environmental legislation; this year I’ve made two trips to Capitol Hill to speak to members of Congress on behalf of the Climate Security Act. The catch? I am also a race car driver. I know, I know… driving 200 mph race cars is by all means a waste of fuel, tires, and carbon fiber. But racing is not just my job - it is my passion and it will always be my first love.
Like it or not, auto racing is the number one spectator sport in America; more people tune in to watch auto races than basketball, baseball and hockey combined. It is the second most popular sport on television, with ratings second only to the NFL. 18 of the top 20 attended sporting events held in the United States are auto races, and while 17 belong to NASCAR, the Indy 500 is the largest attended sporting event in the world with over 400,000 fans gathering annually on the last Sunday in May. With over 75 million of the most brand loyal fans in the world, more Fortune 500 companies sponsor NASCAR than any other sport in the world. What I’m trying to say by all this is, this sport is huge, and though I know this will not make me popular… global warming or not, the sport is not going to go away. I know it is not the most eco friendly sport in the world, and I am on a mission to change that. There are, wrap your mind around this… 100 million race fans in the United States.
So this little tree-hugging race car driver got to thinking, what if I were to start a dialogue with these fans? I started to talk about eco issues on my website several years ago, and I was told by many people in the racing world that I was making a big mistake. They said that as a driver I needed to shut up, drive the car and plug my sponsors. Marketing people warned me that by talking about political and environmental issues I would isolate myself from possible sponsors who would shy away from my “weird, greenie, vegetarian hippie chick image.” (Excuse me; what did you just call me?) Needless to say, I didn’t listen. I decided to talk about what I believed in even if it landed me on the sidelines at the track. I had finally made it to a level in my sport where my races were on TV and I had an audience. I would be a fool to waste that opportunity. So if a sponsor didn’t want to work with me because I promote recycling and caring for the environment, then… thanks, but no thanks, I don’t want you on my race car anyway.
The response was mixed. In between the lovely emails telling me that I was brainwashed by Al Gore (thanks Heartland Institute!), I started to get calls from people who believed in what I was saying. Last year the recycled paper company SMART Papers sponsored my Indy Pro Series car. They told me they had looked at opportunities with various NASCAR and IndyCar drivers and chose me specifically because of my environmental efforts. Likewise, my career as a driver has allowed me to sit with Senators on Capitol Hill to discuss alternative fuels and clean energy. If I wasn’t a race car driver, you probably wouldn’t be reading this article because it is the irony of being a eco-friendly race car driver which gave me the opportunity to write for Huffington Post. So you see, these two seemingly contradictory worlds of mine are endlessly intertwined.
I know some of you are rolling your eyes, calling me a hypocrite, and saying that at the end of the day my race car is still a tire-wasting, fuel-burning polluter. I would not argue with you. So how can I make up for my racing sins? The first thing I do is adopt an acre of rainforest for every race I enter. I know that carbon offsetting is not a solution or a free pass to pollute, but I had to do something about my unavoidable emissions. I also host an eco site where I talk about all the steps I am taking to reduce my carbon footprint. But I know that the place where I can make a real difference is where you would least expect: at the racetrack.
I am in the process of forming what I call my Eco Dream Team. I am going to use my race car as a vehicle (pun intended) to change my sport. Imagine a race car not covered with logos asking fans to buy something but instead calling to action millions of fans to make a difference. Imagine… a black race car, with nothing on it but a CFL lightbulb. Or a canvas grocery bag. Or an aluminum can. Imagine 75 million NASCAR fans recycling their cans. Imagine 40 million IndyCar fans changing their light bulbs to CFLs. Small actions, when multiplied by millions, can make a big difference. Imagine this movement going beyond personal actions. Imagine every race team offsetting their carbon footprint. Imagine every race track with a recycling program. Imagine every racing series using clean renewable alternative fuels. This is my mission. You may think I’m crazy, and maybe I am, but don’t forget what Apple Computers once said. “The people who are crazy enough to think they can change the world, are the ones who do.”
Photo Credit
Craig Davidson
Leilani Münter Driver Profile
October 7, 2008
Name: Leilani Munter
Age: 32
Type of Racing: Open wheel and stock cars
Series you participate in: Indy Pro Series and ARCA
Short Introduction: Leilani is a female racer using her voice to speak up for the environment.
Current Season: Indy Pro Series
Racing Accomplishments:
In 2007 Leilani became the fourth woman in history to compete in the Indy Pro Series, the developmental league of IndyCar.
Leilani was 5th quick in her very first laps at Chicagoland Speedway in a practice session for the Indy Pro Series Chicagoland100 on Sept 8, 2007.
In her first Indy Pro Series race, Leilani turned the 5th quickest lap of the race with a speed of 192.399 mph at Kentucky Speedway on Aug 11,2007.
Leilani qualified 5th for her debut in the Indy Pro Series at Kentucky Speedway on Aug 11, 2007. She had trouble on a restart and dropped back to 13th but dazzled the crowd by racing her way back up to the front of the field. She was about to pass for 4th place when she was collected 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.
Sports Illustrated named Leilani as one of the top ten female race car drivers in the world.
In her very first laps at Daytona International Raceway, Leilani was 24th quick of 59 ARCA race cars testing on Dec 16, 2006.
Leilani set the record for the highest finishing position for a female driver in the history of the 1.5 m
ile Texas.
Motor Speedway when she finished 4th in the Konica Minolta 100 on June 10, 2006.
Leilani became the first woman to qualify in the 45 year history of the Bettenhausen Classic at Illiana Speedway in Indiana on September 16, 2006.
Leilani set the record for the highest qualifying effort for a female stock car driver in the history of the 1.5 mile Texas Motor Speedway when she qualified 4th for the First Convenience Bank 100 on June 12, 2004.
Racing Goals: To race and win in IndyCar and NASCAR Sprint Cup
Personal Info: (other hobbies, career, etc..)
Leilani is not just a race car driver, she is a biologist and an activist. Leilani purchases an acre of rainforest for every race she runs to offset her carbon footprint. She is a long time vegetarian and eco activist. She has traveled to Capitol Hill to speak with members of Congress on behalf of the Lieberman Warner Climate Security Act. She holds a bachelors degree in Biology specializing in Ecology, Behavior and Evolution from the University of California San Diego. While attending college she worked as a volunteer at a wildlife rescue and rehabilitation center.
Trivia:
Leilani once worked as a photo double/stunt driver for actress Catherine Zeta-Jones.
Leilani’s other hobbies include snowboarding and scuba diving.
Leilani’s sister Natascha is married to Grateful Dead guitarist and singer Bob Weir.
Leilani is a vegetarian.
Leilani has three older sisters: Svenja, Nicolette, and Natascha.
Leilani’s mother was born in Hawaii and her father was born in Germany.
Leilani volunteered for a wildlife rehabilitation center while attending college.
Media:
Leilani’s television appearances include: ESPN, Fox Sports, NBC Sports, Spike TV, Speed Channel and National Geographic.
She has hosted television shows on Spike TV and DIY Network. Leilani was also an on camera correspondent for Turner Sports
Interactive’s NASCAR.com for three years. Her weekly “Leilani Reports” were available to over 10 million users and the website had over one billion pageviews annually.
Leilani’s print media includes: USA Today, Sports Illustrated, Italian Vogue, Esquire Magazine’s “A Woman We Love”, en’s Journal, ESPN Magazine, Washington Post, and five magazine covers to date.
Leilani is also an accomplished writer. Her work has been published by Turner Sports on NASCAR.com, Corvette Quarterly Magazine, and the Women’s Sports Foundation.
Leilani’s public speaking engagements include the American Heart Association, ABN-Amro Bank, and the Leadership Forum.
Thanks to:
I would like to thank my family: my father Manfred, my mother Doris and my stepfather Frank, my sister Svenja, my sister Natascha & her husband Bobby, my sister Nicolette & her husband Jon, and my fiance’ Kiwi. Without these people in my life I would have never made it this far. I also have to thank the many people in racing along the way that believed in me and supported my career, you know who you are!
Website: http://leilanimunter.com
Contact: marketing@leilanimunter.com
Photo Credits:
Photo #1 AC Delco
Photo #2 Marc Roy
Photo #3 AC Delco
Photo #4 Shawn Mahoney
LEILANI MUNTER FEATURED IN HISTORICAL INDIANAPOLIS 500 PROGRAM
May 28, 2008
(May 22, 2008) Indianapolis, IN - Pages 162, 163, and 165 of the 2008 Indianapolis 500 program are dedicated to a driver that is not racing this weekend. A young driver who turned the heads of many in the open wheel community when she burst onto the scene in 2007. Driving for Sam Schmidt Motorsports in her first open wheel race, she qualified 5th and had such an impressive run that four time Indy 500 Champion Rick Mears reacted by saying, “Leilani did a great job. I am looking forward to seeing her race some more.”
[Read more]
LEILANI MÜNTER HEADED FOR CAPITOL HILL
March 4, 2008
MÜNTER HEADED FOR CAPITOL HILL:
SPEAKING TO CONGRESS ON BEHALF OF CLIMATE SECURITY ACT
(February 29, 2008) WASHINGTON, DC - On Monday March 3 Leilani Münter will be headed for Washington DC to speak with members of Congress about the Lieberman-Warner Climate Security Act. Leilani will be working with the National Wildlife Federation and training with members of their educational staff on the latest in the legislative fight against global warming.
“I am really excited about my trip to Washington,” said Münter, “My background is in science and I feel strongly about the need for us to make changes to the way we are living on this planet. Small personal changes are important as well, but to make a big impact we need the laws to change. We need big businesses to change their ways. I would like to do whatever I can to make those types of changes happen. The time is now.”
About the Lieberman-Warner Climate Security Act
America’s Climate Security Act (S.2191), introduced by Senator Lieberman (I-CT) and Senator Warner (R-VA), recognizes that climate change is damaging America’s natural resources and will cause substantial additional damage in the future. If passed, the legislation will reduce global warming pollution through a cap-and-trade system. The bill includes a low carbon fuels standard, resources for renewable energy and development of energy efficient technologies, creation of new “Green Collar” jobs, and funding to help wildlife adapt to changes in habitat caused by global warming. The Lieberman-Warner Climate Security Act requires large emitters such as power plants and oil refineries to collectively cut their greenhouse gas emissions every year, starting in 2012, at a pace scientists say is needed to avoid catastrophic climate changes. Global warming is one of the biggest challenges we will face in the next century and the Lieberman-Warner Climate Security Act is an important new approach to combating global warming that works for our economy and our environment.
About National Wildlife Federation
National Wildlife Federation (NWF) is the United States’ largest private, nonprofit conservation education and advocacy organization, with over 4 million members and supporters in 48 state-affiliated organizations. NWF has over 4 million members and a record of achievement that spans seven decades. Their message is simple: we have a moral responsibility to protect wildlife for our children’s future. We do this by aggressively confronting global warming, protecting and restoring wildlife and habitats, and connecting people and nature. NWF seeks balanced, common-sense solutions to environmental problems that work for wildlife and people
About Leilani Münter
Leilani Münter is the fourth woman in history to race in the Indy Pro Series, the developmental league of IndyCar. She has been racing stock cars since in 2001 and had been working her way up the NASCAR ladder when she made the switch to open wheel cars in 2007. Sports Illustrated named her in the top 10 female race car drivers in the world and her racing accomplishments have landed her in the pages of Italian Vogue, ESPN, Men’s Journal, and Esquire Magazine. Leilani graduated from the University of California San Diego with a Bachelors degree in Biology specialzing in Ecology, Behavior and Evolution and is well known for being active in environmental and conservation causes. She hosts an Earth Watch section and blog on her website leilanimunter.com.
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