While the rest of North America was preoccupied with chocolate, flowers and 50 Shades of Grey, Jeff Tweedle was realizing a goal years in the making.

The Marauder runner smashed a team record by more than two full seconds at the Valentine's Invitational in Boston on February 14 to place third in a field of NCAA Division I athletes and post the sixth-fastest 1000m time in the CIS this season.

Tweedle's time of 2:23.66 was a four-second personal best, and eclipsed the team record of 2:25.77 previously set by Hamilton native Paul Kelly in 1986.

He explained that Kelly's record has been in his sights for the past year, since he posted the team's second-fastest time at the same event in 2014.

"As soon as I saw the time, it flashed in my head, because I've been looking at that since last year," recalled Tweedle of crossing the finish line. "I wanted to go after that record and gun for the CIS standard."

The second half of that goal remains unachieved — Tweedle sits five tenths of a second from a time that would automatically qualify him for the CIS Championships — but his chances of qualification are strong as the top ten runners at each distance are selected to compete.

It was a landmark day for Tweedle, who has taken the slow and steady developmental path to his current station as one of McMaster's track stars. He laughs as he recalls his transition from being a "mediocre high-school runner."

"In my first 1000m run for the team, we ran at Western and I finished dead last in my heat out of nine guys," said Tweedle. "Our whole team beat me.

"That was a bit defeating there, but our coaches have been awesome and that next summer was a big breakout for me. Paula worked with me and we saw some potential."

The inauspicious start allowed Tweedle to train without the pressure of expectation, and gave him the freedom to "focus on training and getting as good as (he) could."

He has made huge personal strides in the past year, but alongside his individual objective in the 1000m race, Tweedle has a team standard to aim for. Even while its members have struggled to find a common schedule and shared health, McMaster's 4x800m relay team has its sights set on qualification for the CIS Championships.

The depth of talent is certainly present — as McMaster has no shortage of quality distance runners — but lining all of the team's proverbial ducks in a row is the challenge. Still, Tweedle sees progress on that front, and is optimistic that the relay team can gel in time for the OUA Championships a week from now.

Tweedle's is a remarkable story of development, and he gives much of the credit to his year-round exposure to his accomplished teammates and coaches.

"I'm sure a lot of teams here at McMaster would say the same: this isn't just a team, it's a family. It's great to have these athletes around you because they're inspiring and driven, and keeping everyone around means that your support group stays with you."