Jennifer Pharr Davis did it again! Announced just yesterday, she has been nominated by National Geographic as one of the Top Ten Adventurers, 2012. Jen’s prolific achievement on the Appalachian Trail–she is now the world-record holder of the fastest thru-hike ever on the AT, man or woman–has earned her this impressive recognition. Her story is one of persistence and unmatched inner calm in the face of so many doubting Thomases. Most interestingly, Jen occupies a spot most commonly held by men. Yes, even in the world of adventuring, or perhaps even more so, it is men who usually take the day. Sweating up peaks, sustaining bruises, and eating massive amounts of food is not very lady-like.
However, there is Jen: against all odds, against all stereotypes, she remains a powerful woman in a male-dominated world. She’s proven through her grueling feat that stamina and strength 
are not only for men, but for any who would just reach out and grab them. Jen’s record-breaking hike is a dream dreamed differently; the attainment of what she desired was not informed or shaped or altered by the people (men) who had gone before her. She dreamed without qualifications.
Jen herself puts it best when she says in the National Geographic interview that she “just want[s] women to know that they have the same options as men, whether that’s a thru-hike, a day hike, or a record, or going out for the weekend. . . . I think as it [thru-hiking] continues to evolve, women are going to feel more connected to it now, because they know they have the ability to go out and do something amazing on the trail.”
All of us at Beaufort Books would agree with that. We congratulate Jennifer Pharr Davis on her recognition and hope that her example stands as a reminder to dreamers everywhere that it isn’t what’s happened before that matters, it’s what you decide to do now.
To see the official National Geographic page for JPD, click here:
http://adventure.nationalgeographic.com/adventure/adventurers-of-the-year/2012/jennifer-pharr-davis/
Tags: Becoming Odyssa, Jennifer Pharr Davis, rivaling the odds