SouthFlorida.com | City Link Magazine

For Gunnar Jeannette, sports-car endurance racing comes down to one thing: trying to control something that is inherently out of control while racing other people who are trying to do the same. "And that is a very cool feeling," he says.

At 23 years old, Jeannette is one of the top Le Mans Grand Prix drivers in the world. He honed his skills in West Palm Beach, where he attended Cardinal Newman High School. He broke into the sport through his father, Kevin Jeannette. Since 1978, the elder Jeannette has owned Gunnar Porsche Racing, which restores historic Porsche racecars and sponsors its own team.

"So this really is in my blood," says Jeannette, who lives in Palm Beach Gardens. "The best way to describe it is if I don't race for a month straight, I get really antsy. It's like you're missing a part of your life."

His life took an unexpected turn last year when People magazine named him one of the world's 50 Hottest Bachelors. "With that, I got more shit from my friends than anything else, really," he says with a laugh.

As a result of the article, Jeannette's profile rose among racing fans in the United States, where he is relatively unknown. "Here, it's all about NASCAR, so [Le Mans drivers] don't get as much notice," he explains. "But in Europe, it's all about Formula One and sports cars, so everyone knows what I do."

Jeannette's most exciting finish came during this year's 24 Hours of Le Mans, which as its name implies, is a continuous, 24-hour road race run on a nonpermanent, 8.1-mile track located outside Le Mans, France. He finished fifth following a wicked battle near the race's end. "The other places were already determined so all eyes were on our team going back and forth between the French team," he recalls. "It was the hometown crowd against this American team, and it really became heated. It became a duel to the end, and I was able to edge it out."

Earlier this month, Jeannette competed in the Petit Le Mans at Road Atlanta racetrack in Braselton, Ga. The team that completes 1,000 miles first or is ahead after 10 hours wins the race. As a member of JML Team Panoz, Jeannette shared the driving with Bryan Sellers of Ohio and Marino Franchitti of Scotland. As with most endurance races, the drivers switch off during pit stops and spend from an hour and 15 minutes to three hours behind the wheel at a time. JML Team Panoz finished 21st out of 30.

"Part of endurance is making a car last," Jeannette explains. "So you can't do stupid things. You have to be conservative yet fast."

Jeannette applies that philosophy to nearly all aspects of his life. Not content to defy death solely on a racetrack, he is also an avid skydiver, rock climber and mountain biker. Taking note of his penchant for high-risk recreation, MTV recently shot an episode of its True Life documentary series about him. Its title? I Live on the Edge.

"I'm even thinking about [joining] NASCAR now," Jeannette says. "When there's a chance for a new experience, I never rule it out."