Describe your path to now living in Loveland.
Sara: Shane is originally from Oklahoma, and I am from Texas, but I was born to live in Loveland! I grew up coming to Colorado, and after Shane and I were married, we took a vacation through here and knew this is where we wanted to be.
Shane: We actually stumbled upon Loveland. We found a perfect rental opportunity, and this town was central to my working territory at that time.
You two own Sweetheart City Racing. How did you get started on this adventure?
Sara: This all began when a friend of ours asked us to take over the race she ran so that she could have a baby. We took it over and then began the journey. We changed the name and officially launched Sweetheart City Racing Jan. 1, 2018. After that, things sort of organically morphed into what they currently are.
Shane: It’s been a wild ride, for sure!
How do you choose which races to pursue/host? Will you add any more?
Sara: Most of the races have pursued us—with the exception of a couple that we knew we wanted.
Shane: I think we could do a couple of more, but we’re not necessarily interested in adding more races. The market is pretty saturated in that area, so instead, we’d like to add more distance options for the current races that we already put on.
Have you seen the growth you anticipated?
Sara: We never thought that this amount of growth would have happened so quickly—and we really never imagined that this is what we would be doing. You work hard on something so that it will grow, and it is always encouraging when that growth actually happens.
Shane: These events are very much so a word-of-mouth form of advertising. Our goal is to create an experience during a race so that the participants will return again next year, which establishes our credibility. It is nice to see our participants returning and bringing friends with them the next year!
What else would you like the community to know about you?
Sara: We want the community to know that we are a nonprofit that loves to give back. Last year, we were able to give back $9,000 to the different charities that we support. We look forward to raising more in the years to come!
Shane: I think it is important for people to understand our goal—to be a centralized running group that creates a true community. What is exciting is that we are already seeing that happen, and we look forward to seeing more growth in the future.
You work hard on something so that it will grow, and it is always encouraging when that growth actually happens.
—Sara McWatters