Racing is both a science and an art. In order to win, the engineering and technical know-how that goes into building and developing a race car->ke148 must come into perfect harmony with the instinct and muscle memory of its driver. But sometimes, things go wrong – stuff breaks, grip disappears, talent runs out. Whatever the reason, gathering it back up again comes down to split-second decisions and a few hair-raising moments. And it’s in those moments that it doesn’t hurt to have luck on your side.

In honor of St. Patrick’s Day, we’ve put together some very lucky saves from the world of motorsport.->ke447 Of course, I’m not saying driver skill didn’t play a role in these saves – quite the contrary. It takes a deft hand to come away from this kind of stuff unscathed. Still, watching some of these near misses, it’s pretty obvious the universe is cutting the drivers a little slack.

Continue reading to see some amazingly lucky racing saves.

Drag Racing->ke446

Foot down, go straight. Sounds easy, right? Not really. The thing is, when you’re pushing enough power to hit 200 mph in six seconds, things can go wrong – fast. That much is obvious watching this video. Suddenly, those concrete barriers are looking mighty intimidating.

Isle Of Man TT->ke3446

This one comes from our friends over at Road&Track, who give us a POV look at tackling the insanely dangerous Isle of Man TT. While the race is best known as a motorcycle event, this video comes from inside a Subaru WRX STI, piloted by British Rally Champion Mark Higgins. Higgins gives us a play-by-play as he tears flat-out through the course, but he goes silent after hitting an unexpected bump in sixth gear that pitches the rally car at 150 mph.

NASCAR->ke3635

NASCAR is notorious for its spectacular wrecks, but with the destruction also comes the occasional lucky save. This one shows X Games gold medalist and current rally racer Travis Pastrana out on the oval and getting sideways (unintentionally, that is). Watch as the rear end almost eats concrete off an exit and the car control skills come into play.

The Nurburgring->ke999

Of course we had to include a few near misses from the ‘Ring. This video has a bunch of them, because when you combine high speeds, technical corners, amateur drivers, and daily-driven street cars, the results are bound to be hairy. This video->ke278 also includes a few clips from other tracks and rally racing to spice it up even more.