Apex Technology Sponsors Youth Programs for Natchaug, Lime Rock  

 

BodyArmor, FritoLay, Liro Sport and Azuluna Farms Join Ranks of Partners 

Several new flags will fly at the 2025 Natchaug Epic Presented by Specialized on March 23, 2025. Apex Technology of Rhode Island, an information technology group with a strong history in cycling, will support youth programming both at the Natchaug Epic and Lime Rock Park Epic. 

“We do a lot of business in both markets where Domestique Events hosts events and we had to be part of it,” said Chris Dale, CEO of Apex Technology. “We are passionate about cycling and in particular programs that get young people outside on bicycles.” 

With the support of Apex, organizers will add the 10-mile Tri-State Kids Ride to the offerings at Natchaug. Designed to be a safe and low-stress ride, this ride will utilize much of the Air Line Trail from Thompson to the Tri-State Marker posted at the border of Massachusetts, Rhode Island and Connecticut, which forms the “Quiet Corner” of Connecticut. From there kids and grownups alike will pedal along trails and farm roads back to the track for lunch sitting alongside the big kids who may have completed the 84-mile Epic.  

Apex will also underwrite the ongoing development of mountain bike trails at Lime Rock Park, where event organizers showcased the new “Rattlesnake Ridge” section of trail adjacent to the fabled raceway.  

“With the support of Apex, we can continue the development of a vast trail network that also connects to the Housatonic State Forest,” said Richard Fries, co-founder of the Lime Rock Park Epic set for Sunday, October 12. “We expect to bolt on a high school cross country event that will complement our gravel fondo. We are working alongside several youth programs to steadily develop Lime Rock into a fall festival of cycling.”   

Other new sponsors for 2025 include BodyArmor with its full range of sports drinks and hydration; FritoLay, one of the largest employers in the region; Liro Sport of Colombia, producing custom cycling accessories; and Azuluna Farms, which will host one of the events well-stocked rest stops. 

The sixth edition of the Natchaug Epic Presented by Specialized will be held Sunday, March 23, at the Thompson Speedway Motorsports Park. Dubbed “The Quiet Hell,” this challenging event is the season opener of the New England unpaved calendar. Riders can select one of five different categories of varying distances and degrees of difficulty. A portion of the proceeds support The Hole in the Wall Gang Camp, Best Buddies Connecticut, the Wyndham Land Trust, the Last Green Valley, and the Connecticut Cycling Advancement Program. For more information, visit www.bikereg.com/natchaug-epic. Registration will open May 1 for the fourth edition of the Lime Rock Park Epic Presented by Specialized. Held Sunday, October 12, at the fabled Lime Rock Park raceway, the event offers camping, movies, scholastic cycling and three routes for the gravel fondo.