::Leilani Munter.com::

This is a place for me to express my thoughts on racing, the environment, science, politics, and whatever else might cross my wandering mind. It will be an overflow of random ideas, reflections, notes and quotes to be enjoyed by those of you who take the time to read it. Thanks for stopping by and I'll see you down the road...

Peace,

3.30.06 the perfect beach

I just read the horrible news-- disaster in paradise. My mother was born and raised in Hawaii and I tell you that it is the closest place to heaven we will ever get on Earth.

The first time I went to Hawaii I was one year old so I don't remember much. The second time I went I was twelve and I fell in love with a beach there, which shall remain nameless. It was the most beautiful place I have ever seen. Soft white sand as far as the eye could see, royal blue water as clear as can be, and tall elegant palm trees waving in the warm breeze. It was just me and my family having a picnic and swimming with the colorful tropical fish. We ate mangos and passion fruit and everything in the world seemed sweeter there. I don't remember any other tourists being on the beach. It was like this place was our little secret- the most perfect place on Earth and the locals were going to keep it to themselves.

Years later, while living in the chaotic concrete jungle of Los Angeles, a travel magazine cover story caught my eye. "The Top Ten Beaches in the World" it read across the cover. You know which beach was listed as the number one beach in the world and was on the cover? Yes, my favorite secret little hideaway... that was not so secret anymore. I was devastated, I knew my little beach would never ever be the same. There is a big fancy $500 per night hotel on it now, complete with tennis courts and a golf course. I will never go back to my little beach. I don't want to see it like that. I choose to remember it the way it was when I was twelve-- perfect.

The last time I went to Hawaii was in 2004 with my father. There is something amazing that happens to me everytime get off the plane there. The airport is small and you get off the plane with stairs that take you right onto the runway-- you don't walk into a building like you do on the mainland (this is what the islanders call the continental US). The first thing that hits you while you are standing at the top of those steps is this gentle Hawaiian breeze that carries the smell of flowers. It never fails me at this moment I always get the unmistakeable feeling that the weight of the world has been lifted off my shoulders. I have only experienced this feeling while getting off the plane there, and it always amazes me. It's like you don't know that weight is there until you land in Hawaii and it's gone. You feel lighter. The air is different. The sky is bigger, bluer (is that a word?). Everything is more beautiful. It's very hard to describe, you just have to go there and feel

it for yourself. This last time I went I was armed with my PADI scuba diving license and discovered that half of the beauty in Hawaii you can't see from the land. You can't compare scuba diving there with ANYWHERE else on Earth, it leaves the competition easily in the dust. Unbelievable beauty.

So today when I woke up to the terrible news, it really made me mad. How could this happen? The thought of sewage contaminating these waters is an unacceptable crime. How many beautiful colorful tropical creatures will die? How long will it take the reefs to recover? I just can't believe it. What a disaster.

PS. This beautiful photo was taken by my dear college friend Victoria Jacob who also happens to be an award winning photographer.

3.27.06 paul dana

I'm sitting in a hotel in Indianapolis, the news just broke that IRL Rookie and Indy resident Paul Dana died this morning after a crash at Homestead Miami Speedway. It breaks my heart that you will never live your dream of starting in the Indy 500. May heaven hold many checkered flags for you.

I took my first laps at Rockingham on Friday, I was working for Fast Track with an open wheel driver who is going to go ARCA racing. It was fun. Now I understand why they say it's the speedway that drives like a short track, no kidding.

Congratulations to Bradley Riethmeyer who won the All American Driver Challenge. Bradley and I raced together in the ROMCO Super Late Model Series in 2004.

3.11.06 basketball hero

This video was forwarded to me via email (thanks Tanya!) and it was so wonderful I had to share it with you. A very special young man who's story is brought to you by CBS News: Basketball Star

3.10.06 a late night blog

Sometimes I have trouble sleeping and it seems to calm my nerves to write, so here I am. It's not Restless Leg Syndrome (one of my best friends has it)... I think it's Restless Racer Syndrome. After seeing my Konica Minolta race car unveiled at Fast Track High Performance Driving School, and knowing for several months that I am going to be back on the track this year (thanks to my friends at Konica Minolta, and to my buddies Dan, Sterling & Kiwi) and after answering the same question over and over from Hostess Twinkies eaters "When are you gonna race?" I am feeling rather restless. I want to get back in a race car.

I think back to my debut at Texas Motor Speedway in the ROMCO Super Late Model Series, when I hoped that qualifying 4th and finishing 7th in my first speedway race might get me a full time ride. After all, I set a record at Texas Motor Speedway with that run. Not bad for my first race there. It did get me a one-race deal with Trimspa but motor problems prevented me from running at Kentucky Speedway. I have settled some of those racing nerves recently by working for my friend and mentor Andy Hillenburg and have turned laps at Atlanta Motor Speedway, Lowe's Motor Speedway, Nashville Superspeedway, and Kentucky Speedway working as an instructor for his racing school Fast Track. Later this month I will be giving rides at Rockingham so I am looking forward to that. Going to a new track is like opening a Christmas present. It's a pretty cool gig I've got going here, don't get me wrong, I am not complaining! Just anxious to get out there, that's all. I have also done some testing in the off season, but that's like watching a teaser for a movie and then having to wait months to see it.

Tonight I couldn't sleep so I watched the Olympics Women Figure Skating finals I had taped. I watched as America's sweetheart and Olympic Gold hopeful Sasha Cohen stumbled through her Olympic moment. Four years of hard work, endless sacrifices, and hopes of the Gold gone with two slips of her ice skate. My heart broke for her. In her long program she skated to the theme from Romeo and Juliet, an exquisitely beautiful yet tragic story- much like her performance. It was Japan's Shizuka Arakawa's night, not Sasha's. I am a huge fan of Sasha, she is as graceful on ice as gymnast Nadia Comaneci was in one of the greatest Olympics moments of all time-- a perfect ten, seven times over.

I wonder what will happen in my Olympic moment. I don't feel like that moment is this year. I feel like this year is about preparation for 2007. Race, race hard, and then race harder. This year is about getting seat time, getting back in the saddle, knocking the dust off my helmet. It is about learning and getting better. I have sacrificed many things for many years to get here. Finally I will get what I have wanted ever since I started racing, a seat in a race car full time. No more one-race deals, no more jumping around from team to team without a real home, no more wondering when my next race will be. I will finally have my own team, a regular seat in a race car. It is what I have always dreamed of. I can hardly wait. Maybe that is why I am so restless tonight.

PS. Cheers to the Norwegians this month for coming up with a plan to safeguard the world against catastrophe by building a vault to hold the Seeds of Doom!

2.14.06 ode to racing's significant others

If you happen to have the unfortunate circumstances of dating someone in racing, my sincere apologies. For the rest of you, let me explain...

I am writing this on a airplane on my way home from Indianapolis. It's Valentines Day and instead of being at home with my boyfriend, I am taking care of racing business. That is the what you do when you are in racing. You have certain priorities and they cannot be cancelled for a Hallmark holiday.

The significant others of racing folks understand this or they, very simply, would not be around. Think of the Cup teams that are on the road 36 weekends every season, not including testing. Those are some patient and understanding ladies you guys are dating. I hope you're all doing something very special for those ladies today. Oh, that's right, you're in Daytona. Well I guess there is always next week. Oh wait, you'll be at California Speedway. You get my point.

Racing people are a different breed and it would be a a bit of an understatement to say that they do not live normal lives. We spend our entire careers trying to go in circles faster than anyone else, how normal can we really be? In order to downplay the insanity of it all we have a little expression. "That's racin'" is the affectionate term generally used whenever the circumstances surrounding the livelihoods we have chosen for ourselves become questionable. "Darn it, we just blew up a $50,000 motor after only 10 laps." That's racin'. "Gosh, I just missed my son being born because I was racing in the Daytona 500/Indy 500/insert race here." That's racin'. "Geez, I just spent my entire life savings and 3 months building a race car that got wrecked on the first turn of the first lap of the first race." Yes my friend, that's racin'.

Life in racing is like going through life on a rollercoaster. Some days you end up in victory lane and it's the greatest day

of your life, other days you will bring your race car home on a spatula. But even with all of the countless late nights working on race cars... the endless stream of hotels and airport security lines... even with all the ups and downs that come with being a part of the racing world... in the end, it's all worth it. My buddy Dennis Macchio once said to me of racing (and I think it explains the whole phenomenon quite well):

"If you understand, no explanation is necessary. If you don't understand, no explanation is possible."

It's a good life. A crazy life maybe, but a good one. Enough said.

I myself will be hitting the road (again) in a few days. I started my week in Indy, went back to Charlotte, and I will end it in Daytona. I will be doing my first appearance for Hostess Race Divas on Friday at Speed Beach in Daytona. If you are in the area, come down and say hello and eat a Twinkie with me. I will be signing Race Divas posters and there will be a Twinkie eating competition and all kinds of other fun stuff. Hope to see some of you there. The photo (left) is a real nostalgic metal sign that you can purchase on this collector's site. I also found some Twinkies underwear and much more at the Official Twinkie Shop. Okay, I will stop with the shameless plugs. Happy Valentines Day and special thanks to the significant others of those of us in the racing world, thanks for being so supportive of our schedules, we love you for it.

Cheers, Leilani

PS. In the spirit of Valentines Day National Geographic Magazine printed a cover story about the neurological, scientific phenomenon of that thing called love. If you would like to learn more about the chemical reactions behind those butterflies in your stomach, I highly recommend picking it up.

1.17.06 an old coyote at a poodle party

Like millions of people in the world I recently saw the movie Walk the Line and was moved by the Johnny Cash story. Since Joaquin Phoenix and Reese Witherspoon both won Golden Globes for their acting (and singing) performances last night, it gives me an excuse to talk about him. I admit that I had never listened to Johnny Cash prior to the movie, but I will now call myself a fan. The only Johnny Cash song I knew prior was "Big River" and only because my brother-in-law Bob Weir covered it with his band The Grateful Dead. I am one of many new Cash fans I'm sure. One of my Christmas gifts was his cd set "Walking the Line: The Legendary Sun Recordings. " I was moved by the tribute to Cash written by Patrick Humphries on the inside cover of the first cd. Kris Kristofferson described Cash in action "like watching an old coyote walk through a poodle party" but I think Bob Dylan (who in my opinion has a way with words like no one in this world) said it best when, upon hearing of his death, he declared:

"Johnny was, and is, the North Star; you could guide your ship by him - the greatest of the greats, then and now."

~ Bob Dylan