Leilani
Maaja
Munter

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Leilani Munter is getting in gear to take on Daytona


Bio
Quick Facts
Racing History
Snippets
Leilani Munter is getting in gear to take on Daytona
Leilani Münter 7th quick at Daytona Arca testing on Sunday
Munter Receives Visit From Special Visitor at Daytona; Test Results Successful for MGR
Münter Impressive in Open Wheel Test - Licensed for Indy Pro - 5/16/07
Münter Changing Gears: Headed for Indianapolis in Indy Pro - 4/30/07 Schedule
Related Issue: Women Racers Directory, Women in Racing, Women Racers, More Women in Racing, Race Schedules, Notable Women
Contact:
www.leilanimunter.com/ or E-Mail

 

Diva Calendar

Snippets


Tough Day at Kansas for Leilani Münter 10/1/10

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Leilani started the ARCA Daytona 200 around 25th and got caught up in a big crash on lap 6 that took out 8 other cars including Milka Duno. Leilani finshed 39th.

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Leilani's 2-lap Qualifying for the 2010 ARCA Racing Series at Daytona February 6th, placed her 25th out of 47 and 3rd out of 6 women..

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Leilani tested for the 2010 ARCA Racing Series at Daytona. She was the 4th fastest woman and 20th out of 60 drivers

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 Leilani Münter and Sam Schmidt Motorsports announced today that Münter will make her greatly anticipated Indy Pro Series debut at the Kentucky Speedway on August 11th. Münter will race at Kentucky and in the season finale at the Chicagoland Speedway on September 9th.

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Next race May 25, 2007 - Indy Pro Series Indianapolis Motor Speedway

Quick Facts


Part time model - gave up everything to pursue racing - races in NASCAR Weekly racing series

Full Name: Leilani Maaja Münter
Height: 5'4"
Weight 105 lbs.
Birthplace: Rochester, Minnesota
Residence Cornelius, North Carolina
Marital Status Yes
Parents Parents Manfred (Germany) and Doris (Hawaii)
Three sisters- Svenja, Nicolette and Natascha
Three nieces- Monet, Chloe, and Heather
Ethnicity Half German, Half Japanese
Education Bachelor of Science in Biology, University of California San Diego
Presidential Academic Fitness Award
Teacher Assistant Cellular and Developmental Biology

Current Occupatoin: Race driver in NASCAR Elite Division
Race Instructor at Fast Track High Performance Driving School, Special Correspondent for NASCAR.com
Hobbies: Scuba Diving, snowboarding, Texas Hold'em, travel.
Trivia Leilani once worked as a photo double for actress Catherine Zeta- Jones.
Her sister Natascha is married to Grateful Dead guitarist and lead singer Bob Weir.
She was a stunt double for Kelly Hu in "Scorpion King" and has also worked as a stand in for Salma Hayek.
Leilani volunteered for 3 years at a wildlife rehabilitation center in San Diego, California.
Best Part About Working in the Movies: did a rehearsal with one of my favorite actors, Christopher Walken.
Favorite Movies you Worked On: Ocean Eleven, and Almost Famous.
Words to Live By: Life is short. Race hard. Play hard. Nap hard.
Favorite Quote: Well behaved women seldom make history, Laurel Thatcher Ulrich.
Last Book You Read The Da Vinci Code
Favorite Movies: Napoleon Dynamite and Officespace
Favorite TV Shows: Sex and the City, Daily Show with Jon Stewart

Leilani Munter is getting in gear to take on Daytona


Daytona Beach, Florida (Jan 3, 2012) Leilani Münter, race car driver and passionate environmentalist, is bearing down on her goal of driving a “The Cove” themed race car at Daytona International Speedway, arguably one of the most famous race car tracks in the world. The ARCA race at Daytona is February 18 and will air live on SPEED television, which is available in 79 million homes. This will be the first ever ocean awareness themed race car to race the high banks of Daytona. Münter is seeking corporate and philanthropic donations for the remaining funds required, which is $30,000. Leilani has already raised $15,000 in donations prior to this story. To make a tax deductible donation, please visit opsociety.org/securedonation.htm and be sure to write “For Daytona” in the notes.

The Academy-Award winning documentary “The Cove” exposes the annual slaughter of thousands of dolphins in a small cove in Taiji, Japan. It also exposed the undeniable connection between dolphin parks and dolphin captivity, and the largest slaughter of dolphins in the world. ”The Cove forever changed me. I know race fans will respond to it, they just need to know about it,” said Münter. “The race falls on my birthday, and my greatest wish is to end the slaughter and the ongoing abuse of these beautiful ocean creatures.”

This campaign in designed to educate and engage 75 million race fans in the United States. Director of “The Cove” Louie Psihoyos has committed to giving away 1000 DVDs of “The Cove” at the race, and in addition, will be in attendance for the race alongside dolphin activist Ric O’Barry autographing DVDs of the film. People donating $50 or more will be entered into a raffle to win two pit passes for the Daytona race and two other lucky fans will win two garage passes each. Münter will be wearing a helmet painted for “The Cove” during the race, which will then be auctioned off with all the proceeds going to Ric O’Barry’s Dolphin Project to continue the fight on the ground in Taiji. To donate to “The Cove’s” awareness campaign at Daytona,click here and be sure to write “For Daytona” in the notes. (...)

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Leilani Münter, race car driver and passionate environmentalist, is bearing down on her goal of driving a “The Cove” themed race car at Daytona International Speedway, arguably one of the most famous race car tracks in the world. The ARCA race at Daytona is February 18 and will air live on SPEED television, which is available in 79 million homes. This will be the first ever ocean awareness themed race car to race the high banks of Daytona. Münter is seeking corporate and philanthropic donations for the remaining funds required, which is $30,000. Leilani has already raised $15,000 in donations prior to this story. To make a tax deductible donation, please visit opsociety.org/securedonation.htm and be sure to write “For Daytona” in the notes.

The Academy-Award winning documentary “The Cove” exposes the annual slaughter of thousands of dolphins in a small cove in Taiji, Japan. It also exposed the undeniable connection between dolphin parks and dolphin captivity, and the largest slaughter of dolphins in the world. ”The Cove forever changed me. I know race fans will respond to it, they just need to know about it,” said Münter. “The race falls on my birthday, and my greatest wish is to end the slaughter and the ongoing abuse of these beautiful ocean creatures.”

This campaign in designed to educate and engage 75 million race fans in the United States. Director of “The Cove” Louie Psihoyos has committed to giving away 1000 DVDs of “The Cove” at the race, and in addition, will be in attendance for the race alongside dolphin activist Ric O’Barry autographing DVDs of the film. People donating $50 or more will be entered into a raffle to win two pit passes for the Daytona race and two other lucky fans will win two garage passes each. Münter will be wearing a helmet painted for “The Cove” during the race, which will then be auctioned off with all the proceeds going to Ric O’Barry’s Dolphin Project to continue the fight on the ground in Taiji. To donate to “The Cove’s” awareness campaign at Daytona,click here and be sure to write “For Daytona” in the notes.

Münter is a biology graduate turned race car driver and environmental activist who adopts an acre of rainforest for every race she runs and promotes only environmentally conscious companies on her race car. Since seeing the film, she has traveled three times to Taiji, Japan to document the slaughter first hand and has organized several screenings of the film. Most recently, she spearheaded a campaign to turn the lights of the Empire State Building red to raise awareness.

At Münter’s last race at Daytona, she was driving the first ever 100% eco sponsored race car, with six environmental companies coming together to get her car on the track. The race was watched by 2.4 million people live on SPEED television and 100,000 people were watching the race trackside. The media exposure she received included the front page of the sports section of the New York Times.
Source: http://femaleracingnews.com/circle_track/leilani-munter-is-getting-in-gear-to-take-on-daytona/

Tough Day at Kansas for Leilani Münter - 10/1/10


Leilani Münter and the #59 Operation Free Mark Gibson racing team unloaded the car Thursday morning with high hopes for the Kansas Lottery 150 at Kansas Speedway after a successful test session here a week before. They were joined by a number of the Operation Free veterans who came to help spread the message of the need for Energy Independence as a matter of national security to a new audience.

Münter was sitting 21st on the practice board when with 5 minutes left in the practice the team went out for a mock qualifying run and the car got loose coming out of turn 1 and backed into the wall. “We had been loosening the car up all practice” Münter said “then we taped up the nose and put stickers on to take a mock qualifying run to see how it would handle, the car felt great through 3 and 4 as I was getting up to speed but as I went through turn 1 it got loose and backed into the fence. Finding the edge is part of the game, and I certainly found it yesterday. It’s obviously not what I wanted for my first ARCA race back since Daytona, but in racing we all have our bad days and today it was my turn.”

The MGR crew worked to get the back-up car ready and the team used the qualifying run to shake down the car since Leilani hadn’t had any laps in it. The car was way too loose and Münter spun coming out of turn four but did a great job keeping the car off the wall and went through the grass.

The team made changes to tighten up the car after qualifying. Starting at the back, Leilani took a cautious approach, hanging back and feeling the car out when 5 laps in tragedy struck again with the engine overheating.

“We only had one lap on the back-up car before taking the green and it overheated just a few laps in. I can’t thank Operation Free and Sturman Industries enough for this opportunity today, as well as Mark Gibson Racing for all their hard work. I am heartbroken that it ended the way it did.”

“Some of the drivers in the garage were kind enough to tell me stories of similar moments in their racing career to cheer me up,” said Leilani, “and even though I know that all race drivers have stories of going into a corner and never coming out the other side – it still doesn’t make it any easier when it happens to you. I just have look forward and focus on putting something together for next year now that we’ve got all our bad luck out of the way.”

“With our partnership with Leilani, we set out to reach an entirely new audience with our message that America needs to take control of its energy future with clean, American power,” said Jonathan Murray, U.S. Marine Corps veteran and Operation Free Campaign Director. “Leilani has been a great partner in delivering the message that our dependence on oil is a threat to our national security. By making small but significant changes like raising fuel efficiency standards to 60 mpg by 2025, we will become far less dependent on oil and therefore less vulnerable to the whims of our enemies. And someday, we can look forward to race cars doing 200 miles per hour at 40, 50, even 60 miles per gallon. The “Race to Energy Independence” effort drives that point home.”

Leilani will be along side top retired military leaders and veterans at the Operation Free tent located in the fan area right outside Kansas Speedway Saturday and Sunday to meet with race fans, sign autographs and spread the message about the importance of energy independence and the threats posed to our nation by our current energy policy.

Leilani Münter 7th quick at Daytona Arca testing on Sunday


Leilani Münter was 7th quick in her #59 NextEra Energy Resources Dodge on Sunday afternoon testing at Daytona International Speedway with a speed of 181.77 mph. Mark Gibson Racing gained valuable information that they hope to bring with them back to Daytona for the race on February 6. The team tried out several different suspension packages throughout Saturday and Sunday and finally found a set up they liked on Sunday afternoon.

"I was happy with the test overall. We were able to make a lot of changes to the car, some worked others did not. But that is why we go to the test," said team owner Mark Gibson, "We still have a lot of work to do before the race to close the gap on the Toyotas. I feel the engine program is our strong point. Now we just have to get the areo package worked out on our Dodges. After seeing the bodies on some of the top ten cars I realized we have some work to do. As a team I thought we worked very well together. We had some new crew members along with people who have worked for MGR for years. Everyone fit together as if they had worked with each other all along."

"Leilani did a great job. She gave great feedback and could feel the changes we made to the car. Her enthusiasm was great and she kept the team pumped up all weekend. Parker (Kligerman) was the same way - he was just glad to have the opportunity to drive the car and that outlook carries over to the team," added Mark, "Having NextEra Energy on board for the test was great. We learned so much about what their company is doing and also the things that we all need to do to not only save energy but to help our environment. Leilani is a great ambassador for Nextera and the green movement. Hopefully we can help educate the race fans about what we need to do to help save our environment."

"Throughout the weekend we tried a lot of different set ups for the car and by Sunday afternoon, Mark Gibson and the team had really figured out what package we needed under the car," said Leilani, "They are great guys and they gave me a great car to drive. It's so much fun being out there in quality equipment. I had a lot of fun drafting with Danica Patrick and Bobby Gerhart, and that's a pretty good crowd to be hanging with out there. We are really happy with our test and very hopeful we can come back for the race in February," said Leilani, "I can't thank NextEra Energy Resources enough for giving us the opportunity to test Daytona, it was incredibly valuable to us as a team to kick off the 2010 racing season with a successful test."
Source: www.girlracer.co.uk

Munter Receives Visit From Special Visitor at Daytona; Test Results Successful for MGR (12-28-09)


The recent open test at Daytona Int'l Speedway created a great deal of interest in the ARCA Racing Series presented by RE/MAX and Menards.

Not only was the national and international media there to cover Danica Patrick's much anticipated stock car debut, NASCAR President Mike Helton also stopped by to check things out.

Münter Impressive in Open Wheel Test- Licensed for Indy Pro - 5/16/07


Leilani Münter earned her Indy Pro Series license on Monday when she tested an open wheel car for the first time. Münter quickly adjusted to her new race car and got up to speed turning consistent lap times in the 28 second range

Münter Changing Gears: Headed for Indianapolis in Indy Pro - 4/30/07


Up and coming stock car driver Leilani Münter has decided to kick off her fenders to try out some open wheel racing. After attending the Indy Pro Series open test at Indianapolis Motor Speedway on April 27 as a guest, Münter will be testing an Indy Pro Series car in preparation to enter the Indianapolis Freedom 100 at Indianapolis Motor Speedway

Racing History

(NASCAR Elite series signed with Hostess Twinkies)

2004

Debuted in the ROMCO Super Late Model Series with an impressive run. In her first super late model race and her first race at Texas Motor Speedway, Leilani was 6th fastest of 26 race cars in practice. She started 4th and finished 7th on the lead lap and closing. Signed as special correspondent with NASCAR.com.

2003

Signed a multi-year driver development contract with Team Bristol Motorsports, home of the 54 Busch Series race team. After an impressive test where Leilani turned lap times just 2/10 of a second off the pole position in her first test with Team Bristol, Leilani debuted in the NASCAR Dodge Weekly Series with a 9th place finish in the Coor's Light 150 at South Boston Speedway. In the final laps of this 150 lap race, Leilani was turning the same lap times as the leader. Two weeks later, Team Bristol Motorsports encountered financial difficulties that forced the team to retire from competition.

2002

Relocated to North Carolina, worked at a racing school, tested late models. Studied race car set up, geometry, and aerodynamics with Larry McReynolds.

2001

Started racing stock cars in the Allison Legacy Series where she fought for the lead for several laps in her first heat race. She spun attempting to make a pass for the lead and finished fourth. Qualified and finished seventh in main event.

2000

Attended various racing schools.

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