Leilani Munter Plots a Fast Course to Her Goals
Indy Lights Racer Aims for Early Return to Series
by Allan Brewer
allan@indyproracer.com
 Leilani Munter addresses National Wildlife Federation.
Photo: Courtesy Leilani Munter |
Leilani Munter finds her passion in two things: racing and caring for the environment. Though she’s out of the cockpit (for now), she’s not out of the public eye, continuing to speak out with a heartfelt message of environmental awareness and activism that is unique in the racing community.
The former photo-double for Catherine Zeta-Jones and stunt woman is seriously pursuing an Indy Lights Series ride while earning praise for her efforts to raise motorsports’ and the general public’s level of knowledge about issues like energy conservation, reducing greenhouse gas emissions and embracing new technologies (such as hydrogen-powered vehicles).
“I’ve been busy doing a lot of environmental work,” she said during a recent visit to Indiana and the Indianapolis Motor Speedway. “In March I went to Capitol Hill to speak to members of Congress on behalf of the Climate Security Act. Last week I gave a speech at the National Wildlife Federation’s annual meeting in Keystone, Colorado.”
“Small personal changes like changing out your lightbulbs and recycling are really important,” she continued, “and when you multiply that by millions of people it can make a big impact. But in order to make a big impact, we need the laws to change. That is why I am being very vocal in my support for the Climate Security Act. On June 2nd I will make another trip to speak with members of Congress before the Senate votes on June 6.”
“It’s going to be a really important piece of legislation.”
Munter Keeps Keen Eye for Eco-Friendly Action
Leilani sees opportunity in every corner for progress in environmental accountability and response. Some of the ideas are so simple and so compelling that one wonders why they haven’t been de riguer in motorsports for ages.
“I’d like to see race teams offsetting their carbon footprint. I would like to see expansion of the use of biofuels (such as ethanol),” she said. “There are already cars running on cellulostic ethanol (a variant production method using wood chips, swtichgrass and other organic materials as source material rather than corn).”
“The effort to recycle could be a lot bigger,” she continued, ”and some tracks have no recycling program at all going on.”
“We also need to reach out to the racing community and to our fans. I want to use my racecar to send messages about little things we can do for the environment, and the great thing about making these positive eco changes to your life is you will often save some money in the pocketbook as well.”
Lasting Laps Commitment Key to Indy Lights Racer's Return
Fans have been eager for the speedy young racer to return to the track. Munter feels the same call, but the financial barriers of putting together a racing program dictate how fast and how far she can go.
“It’s not fun to be here at Indy without a car,” she said. “It’s a bummer.”
“I hope things come together for a run at Kentucky and Chicagoland, and I’m putting all my effort into securing a full season with a team for 2009.”
“Realistically I’ll probably run at Kentucky and Chicago,” she said, “but ideally I’d like to have a full season with testing in a competitive car. The goal is to have a good fast car and be in the game for the whole season—to do it right.”
“I’m open to various options, though. I’m just working really hard to make it happen.”
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