<p>Jennifer Pharr Davis is an internationally celebrated adventurer, author, mother and business owner. In 2011, she covered the 2,185-mile Appalachian Trail (AT) in forty-six days, eleven hours, and twenty minutes, a remarkable average of forty-seven miles per day and the overall fastest known time to complete the “AT.” She is the first woman to set that mark.</p><p>And she has yet to slow down. Hailed as "The Serena Williams of thru-hikers" by PBS, Jennifer’s accomplishments and expertise have been featured in <em>The New York Times</em>,<em> Outside</em> magazine,<em> National Geographic</em>, and the IMAX film Into <em>America's Wild</em>. </p><p>Jennifer shares her trail adventures with corporate, association, and educational audiences across the country. In the process, she encourages people to leverage their innate endurance and grit to achieve personal bests in everything from sports and family to the boardroom. </p><p>Jennifer has served on the President's Council for Sports Fitness, and Nutrition and is the founder of Blue Ridge Hiking Company, a guiding service that strives “to make the wilderness accessible and enjoyable for adventurers of all ages, genders, and levels of ability.</p><p>Jennifer’s most recent book, <em>The Pursuit of Endurance: Harnessing the Record-Breaking Power of Strength and Resilience</em>, was published in 2018. </p>
National Geographic Adventurer of the Year, Record-Setting Long Distance Hiker
<ul><li><strong>I Belong: A Woman’s Place is in The Record Books</strong></li><li>In 2011, Jennifer Pharr Davis hiked 47 miles a day for 46 straight days to beat the boys and set a new overall fastest known time on the iconic Appalachian Trail. She was questioned at every turn by naysayers (mostly men) who thought a female hiker could never match the endurance and perseverance of elite ultra runners. But with skill, ingenuity, and a lot of toughness, Jennifer did just that. In this presentation, Jennifer discusses how she carved out a place for herself in a male-dominated field… and how you can do the same.</li><li><strong>The Next Step: Navigating a New Adventure</strong></li><li>Like business, the trail is a journey full of twists and turns, peaks and valleys, blue skies and rainy days. Jennifer has experienced it all over the years and has gained great perspective from hiking more than 15,000 miles on long distance trails around the world. Whether your company is going through a merger, acquisition or simply facing the day-to-day challenges of a competitive market, Jennifer will share vignettes from Iceland, the Alps, and the Appalachian Trail that will give your team the perspective and motivation to embrace the journey, roll with the punches, and reach the summit together.</li><li><strong>Trailblazer: Hard Earned Lessons from The Appalachian Trail and Beyond</strong></li><li>The Appalachian Trail runs 2,190 miles from Georgia to Maine. Jennifer Pharr Davis has hiked it three separate times and has collected countless stories and lessons along the way. Stories that convey the importance of maintaining vision and direction, of practicing self care in extreme environments, of communicating clearly and directly with your team, and of embracing temporary discomfort to achieve the end goal. You don’t have to hike America’s most iconic trail to gain these takeaways. Let Jennifer bring the Appalachian Trail to your meeting space, inspiring your group with wisdom that will be remembered for years to come.</li></ul>