We had the good fortune of connecting with Sara Mcwatters and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Sara, what was your thought process behind starting your own business?
Years ago we were going to buy a run/bike shop. Because of this, Jake and Nicole Fellure thought we would be the perfect fit to take over the Loveland Liberty 5K. They were the ones to start/create this race. They had spoken of this to my husband Shane for a few years. One year he finally came home, handed me a binder and said I have been “voluntentold” to take this over. After diving into what it takes to host this race, and getting more involved in community events, we realized, there was a huge piece missing from our town. We wanted to help build the running/walking community. Find a way to highlight local businesses and non-profits while providing a need for quality, professional running events that showcase this amazing town.

Let’s talk shop? Tell us more about your career, what can you share with our community?
Each of our events supports a local non-profit. Many times our participants haven’t heard of the local non-profit partner and get to learn how they make a difference in our community and who they help. We also LOVE working with local businesses. If we are partnering with a local business it’s because we can 100% confidently send people their way. We love connecting people with businesses and non-profit organizations that can help them. We are most proud of our work when we get to see the smiles of proud participants as they cross the finish line and give them a high five.

We are fortunate to have family members in the same industry to bounce ideas off of. It has certainly not been easy but because we have different talents and skill sets we can overcome any obstacle that comes our way. The biggest thing we are proud of with Sweetheart City Racing is the fact that we are a Loveland based family owned and operated business. Our kids have been involved in the races since they were small. Our other team members are also considered “family” and even fortunate to have veterans on our team.

If you had a friend visiting you, what are some of the local spots you’d want to take them around to?
We would start our day at Colorado Coffee for their amazing coffee drinks and cinnamon rolls. We love visiting the downtown location!
After sitting and catching up, we would walk around downtown Loveland to visit some of our favorite shops, like the antique store. Then, we would head over to the original Doug’s Day Diner for lunch.
We would then have to schedule an afternoon of horseback riding at Sylvan Dale Guest Ranch for a lot of fun and to show off the beauty of their ranch.
Of course, after all that hard work, we would be thirsty and need to stop by Backyard Tap for afternoon drinks and downtime.
To finish off the day we would go to dinner at Vatos Tacos for their amazing tacos, nachos, and of course, margaritas!

If this was too full of a day, we would visit these locations spread out over a few days or a week. There are so many places to visit in Loveland. If time allowed we would go to Scheels and ride the Ferris wheel. We would also include a stroll around Lake Loveland, and the Benson Sculpture garden.
There ‘s nothing better than showing off Loveland by walking/riding the rec path around the town. What a packed week that would be!

Who else deserves some credit and recognition?
I would love to give a shout out to a few people who are responsible for all of this happening. Allison Seabeck encouraged us to make changes with the club and helped us create the name, Sweetheart City Racing. Jake and Nicole Fellure are the ones who handed the Loveland Liberty 5K race over to us. They entrusted us to carry on their legacy of the event. And most of all, all the folks who sign up and show up to our events. Without them, none of this would be possible.

Website: https://www.sweetheartcityracing.com/

Instagram: @sweetheartcityracing

Facebook: Sweetheart City Racing

Image Credits
Shane McWatters
Austin Strader
Mike Ensley
Sara McWatters

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