You know the economy has hit a rough patch when tickets at Richmond International Raceway are still for sale a day before the Lipton Tea 250. The Times-Dispatch notes that 400 tickets had gone unsold. That's not many compared to the raceway's 112,000 seats, but it could mark the first time in 32 Cup events that a race had failed to sell out.

While RIR is not likely to feel much pain from falling 1/2 of one percent shy in ticket sales, what are the ticket scalpers supposed to do?

A recent economic-impact study concluded that for every 1,000 seats the track adds, more than $4.3 million is pumped into the area economy. If that holds true today, a shortfall of 400 tickets could translate into a loss of $1.7 million in trickle-down economic activity in the region. And that doesn't account for sponsorships and other revenues generated by the Raceway.

Buckle your seatbelts, boys and girls, we could be in for a rough ride.