Lyn St. James recorded many milestones in a career that spanned four decades, including seven starts in the Indianapolis 500 and class victories in both the Rolex 24 at Daytona and the Mobil 1 Twelve Hours of Sebring. She also remains one of the sport’s most visible advocates for women in motorsports.

At Lime Rock Park, St. James famously shared the spotlight with actor and racer Paul Newman during the 1989 SCCA Trans Am race when the two became tangled in an opening lap incident that left one car perched on top of the other.

“My favorite memories of Lime Rock Park are primarily the Trans Am Series back in the ’80s,” St. James recalled. “Going through Big Bend, that was before they put the chicane in the back. It was a different track then. It’s a beautiful place, a beautiful part of the country and beautiful fans for racing. But I had to get used to not racing on Sunday. That was weird.

“Unfortunately, some of the better memories are crashing with Paul Newman,” she added with a laugh. “I had a couple of those with Paul, ‘PLN,’ at Lime Rock.”

Despite the dramatic incident in 1989, there were no hard feelings between the two drivers. Like most racing incidents, both competitors simply returned to their garages once the dust settled.

“When you crash, you don’t go around talking to the other drivers. You go back to your respective garages,” she said. “It looked like he rode up on top of my car.”

A few races later Newman made it clear everything was forgiven.

“Later on we were racing in Texas and we were both trying to get to pit lane,” she said. “He had a scooter and I was walking. He said, ‘Do you want a ride?’ A photographer took a picture and it was in the newspaper the next day.”

St. James kept a copy of the photo for years before finally asking Newman to sign it.

“Years later I saw Paul and asked if he would autograph it. I know he didn’t like signing autographs,” she said. “He wrote, ‘Rear-ended again! PLN.’ So we were fine.”

While the 1989 incident drew the most attention, St. James also achieved an important career milestone at Lime Rock the year before. In 1988 she qualified fourth and finished 11th in Trans Am competition.

“Actually my best memory at Lime Rock came when I qualified in the Fast Five,” she said. “That was a big deal in Trans Am back then and I was given a Fast Five hat, jacket and a photo with the guys.”

Those drivers included pole winner Scott Pruett, Irv Hoerr, Walter Röhrl and, fittingly, Paul Newman.

Today, St. James continues her advocacy for women in motorsports through her work with Women in Motorsports North America (WIMNA), the nonprofit organization she co-founded alongside Beth Paretta, owner of the Paretta Autosport IndyCar team and the first woman to lead a female-driven team entry in the Indianapolis 500. As a leading voice for opportunity and inclusion across the industry, St. James helps champion programs that support women as drivers, engineers, mechanics, executives and media professionals. That mission now connects directly to Lime Rock Park, which serves as an Official WIMNA Regional Hub in the Northeast. Through events, mentorship and community initiatives hosted at the circuit, the partnership aims to expand opportunities and celebrate the growing impact of women throughout motorsports.