FreshTracks Capital recently traveled to Manchester NH to participate in the Speed Venture Summit, a conference designed to match entrepreneurs with investors through a 15 minute speed dating pitch format.  The 2008 Summit was co-hosted by the NH Small Business Development Center and the NH High Technology Council, and brought together over 50 companies seeking capital with 25 angel groups and venture capital funds.  In addition to FreshTracks, there were a number of other VCs focused on investing in the northeast, including: Borealis Ventures, Clear Venture Partners, .406 Ventures, Ascent Venture Partners, and Ironwood Equity. 

The companies pitching ran the gamut from Ecotouch's waterless car wash products, to Apollo-Systems, which provides inspection solutions to the commercial printer market, to Foneshow, which delivers free audio content directly to your cell phone.

There were two Vermont companies presenting at the event: CherryMax Sleds (AKA Hammerhead) the high-end sled designer, and Vermont Clinical Decision Support, (AKA VermedX) a clinical decision support platform initially targeted at diabetes patients and their physicians.

To view a video of the pitch-off among the finalists, please click here: Speed Venture Summit Finalists.