Vermont Business Magazine The first annual Vermont Road Pitch “Pitch-Off” was held at Champlain College on Tuesday, October 18. Augustine (Gus) Rietsema from MacroFuel Food won the statewide Pitch-Off, edging out 10 other talented entrepreneurs. Earlier this summer, 11 businesses won local and regional Road Pitch competitions to qualify for the Statewide Pitch-Off. Fresh Tracks Road Pitch is a 5-day motorcycle tour that brings 45 riders with investment and business experience to towns throughout Vermont to hear business ideas from local entrepreneurs. Each entrepreneur presents a 7-minute pitch to the group of judges, followed by a question and answer session. The judges rate each pitch on a number of business variables and choose one winner.
MacroFuel’s Gus Rietsema and Jan Marinelli, Executive Director of Lake Champlain Islands Economic Development Corporation celebrate MacroFuel’s win at the Fresh Tracks Capital Road Pitch - Pitch Off. Photo: Bob LoCicero. For more Road Pitch Photos contact www.boblphoto.com.
MacroFuel initially won the Grand Isle County Road Pitch regional competition this past August that was hosted by LCIEDC. MacroFuel was founded by a group of recent Cornell University graduates - including CEO and Plattsburgh, NY native Rietsema. The company offers a performance meal replacement made of real food ingredients, with a balanced nutritional profile, in a tasty 330 calorie meal. The product is available exclusively online at www.MacroFuelFood.com. For winning the Pitch – Off, MacroFuel received a $4,000 check and a guaranteed year of free business and investment coaching from the entire Road Pitch Judges Group.
According to Rietsema, "Each of these entrepreneurs did a fantastic job at Road Pitch. MacroFuel is honored to be this year’s statewide winner. I look forward to working with the Fresh Tracks Capital Road Pitch Team to take MacroFuel to the next business level.”More than 45 motorcycle riders circumnavigated Vermont from August 1 through August 5 as part of the third annual FreshTracks Capital Road Pitch. The riders (comprised of investors, entrepreneurs and business advisors) each traveled more than 550 miles and stopped in 10 towns to review 50 business pitches from local entrepreneurs.
Each entrepreneur had seven minutes to present their business concept or plan and eight minutes to answer questions from the group of riders. In each town, a Riders’ Choice Winner was selected and the winner received $500, and a special edition Vermont Teddy Bear biker bear and an entry into the Road Pitch statewide “Pitch‐off” was held on October 18 at Champlain College.
Cairn Cross introduces the program during the Pitch Off at Champlain College. VBM photo.
“We watched 50 well‐rehearsed pitches from both start‐up companies and established businesses this year,” said Cairn Cross, co‐founder of FreshTracks Capital and creator of Road Pitch. “The local organizers in each town did a terrific job of coaching the entrepreneurs. The competition is going to be fierce at the final ‘Pitch‐off’ on October 18th.”
At the final Pitch‐off, one overall statewide Riders’ Choice Winner will be picked and awarded $4,000 and mentorship from the Road Pitch Riders for a year.
The towns and their winners were as follows:
Essex Junction: Tomorrow’s Harvest, a food company producing products made from crickets.
Rutland: Clustas, which has brought to market a unique and proprietary portable weight training system.
Bennington: Windrush.io, software to make data visualization easy and fun.
Brattleboro: ITVFest, the premier company for independent television show production.
Barre: Liz Lovely, which produces delicious gluten free cookies.
Randolph (Vermont Technical College): Home Outside, a simple software application that helps homeowners professionally design landscaping and outdoor spaces.
St Johnsbury: The Chimney Scrubber LLC, an ingenious chimney cleaning system for wood burning fireplaces and stoves.
Lowell: Tara Lynn Bridal, a clothing design and manufacturing firm.
Hyde Park: MoTown Mushrooms, supplies equipment and seed to allow users to grow mushrooms at home.
South Hero: Macrofuel Foods, a tasty meal replacement beverage.
Champlain Mini Maker’s Faire Road Pitch: Blown Fuse Arcades, makes custom, classic arcade games.
“We are able to offer prizes through the generous sponsorship provided by Vermont Department of Economic Development, Champlain College, Burlington Bytes, Key Bank, Gallagher Flynn and Company, Vermont Small Business Development Center, Dinse, Vermont Business Magazine, Moulton Law Group, DesignBook, Milk Money, Merritt and Merritt, North Country Angel Group, Champlain Mini Makers Faire, Vermont Teddy Bear and LaunchVT,” said Cross. “Each of these sponsors plays a key role in the statewide entrepreneurial ecosystem and we are happy for their support.”
The goals of Road Pitch are to connect Vermont entrepreneurs to resources such as capital and advice, advocate for entrepreneurs throughout the state, help entrepreneurs polish and refine their pitching skills, showcase entrepreneurship through a highly visible annual event, find investible opportunities for private investors and source capital for entrepreneurial businesses, and promote motorcycle touring in Vermont while having fun and riding safely.
This year while touring the state, the rider group handed out 500 Vermont Brownie Company Brownies during the week with a Share the Road riding safety and motorcycle awareness message.
About Road Pitch:
Road Pitch is a multi‐day motorcycling event where motorcyclists with investing, business advising or entrepreneurial experience ride through Vermont stopping in small towns to listen to entrepreneurs pitch their business concepts. Riders provide advice, connect the entrepreneurs with resources where appropriate, and occasionally make an investment in a business opportunity but always award a Riders’ Choice prize in every town they stop in. The ride promotes Vermont as a terrific place to do business as well as a perfect motorcycling destination with lots of scenic twisting roads, picturesque small towns, and plenty of locally sourced food and beverage. Road Pitch was founded in 2014 by Cairn Cross co‐founder of FreshTracks Capital.
For more information, visit the Fresh Tracks Road Pitch website: www.roadpitch.co