The Pursuit of Endurance: Harnessing the Record-Breaking Power of Strength and Resilience

With none of Scott's self-importance, Jennifer's style is personable and funny. She demystifies mythic characters in the endurance world moving their feats from unfathomable to inspiring. She has a unique talent for interviews. Reading it, you feel let into a very private world filled with characters who are fascinating, impressive, wacky, wise, and very much human. I couldn't put it down.Jennifer draws connections between the obstacles the athletes have overcome in their personal lives and what they are able to accomplish on the trail. In doing so, she breaks down lessons in endurance into concrete take-aways I can use in my life. I'm not a distance hiker, yet I found myself inspired to push myself outside of my comfort zone and examine self-imposed limits on what I think is possible in my life.Like Jennifer, this book has so much heart.My favorite quote: When my husband and I are in the car and we pass a runner or walker on the sidewalk, it is natural for him to make comments about how fast or slow they're going and what their stride looks like. My rule of thumb is that you never judge someone else's pace or form, because you don't know how far they've come and what they're still planning to do.We all have our long trails, and most of them do not include much hiking or running. Outside the forest, our paths take the form of higher education, climbing out of debt, navigating a career, staying married, undergoing divorce, surviving tragedy, and coping with illness. It behooves us to not come to quick conclusions about other people's paths and instead approach each individual with encouragement and compassion. We might be on different trails, but we are all midjourney.

Jennifer Pharr Davis, author, National Geographic Adventurer of the year, and record holder of the fastest-known time on the Appalachian Trail for four years --her record was broken by Scott Jurek, whose book North details his Appalachian Trail run-- shares stories of feats of endurance as well as her own story in the very engaging The Pursuit of Endurance. I expected The Pursuit of Endurance to be Pharr Davis' story, but instead, she shares her story along with the stories of many others who have inspired her. Interspersed throughout the book are tips and advice to guide the reader to developing endurance as well as mental toughness. She believes and espouses that anyone who really wants to do can push themselves farther than they think.Pharr Davis is mentored by mostly male endurance athletes and her book reads like a who's who of ultradistance athletes. Warren Doyle, David Horton, Scott Jurek, and Andrew Thompson are some of the ultradistance athletes that she mentions in The Pursuit of Endurance. Some of these men mentored her--others were influential in her journey. I've heard how tight-knit the ultra community is and by all accounts, these runners support each other and celebrate victories, even when records of their own are broken.I found The Pursuit of Endurance to be immensely readable and interesting. Pharr Davis is a prolific writer and at times I lost myself in the adventures shared on the pages. I'm not an ultrarunner nor do I desire to be one, but I do find inspiration in the stories of runners, particularly women, who push themselves to attempt endeavors that the average person wouldn't dream of. As an aside, Pharr Davis was pregnant when she finished her FKT attempt. It seems the sky is the limit for women and it will be exciting to see what the next generation of young women do in the world of endurance events.Pharr Davis ends the book with thoughts on the future of endurance and the pursuit of the FKT in the era of more athletes pursuing records, the use of GPS, and the honesty of athletes. She shares what she's learned from her fellow trail runners. She reminds her readers to continue to move forward.

In The Pursuit of Endurance, Jennifer explores endurance through the journeys of those who have pushed their limits physically and mentally. She was able to successfully and succinctly identify, from their successes and failures, principles that transcend our daily lives and allow us to be the best version of ourselves. Along the way questions were inevitable and she dug for answers in the lives of human beings committed to endurance and its complexities.If one has not explored their own limits, then this book alone may not provide all the context needed to understand the personal journeys of endurance, including successes, failures, sacrifices, and rewards, illustrated in the book. I recommend reading all her books to better understand her own physical and mental growth in capacity for endurance, as well as her understanding of both.The last point she makes in the book is compelling and hopeful. "Endurance isn't a human trait; it is THE human trait. We exist only as long as we persist. And there is confounding hope and limitless possibilities in our ability to rise up, change direction, and take one more step."

I read the book after trying the Kindle sample and expected it to be mostly an account Jennifer Pharr Davis attempt to set a record on the Appalachian Trail.It turned out to be something else. The title should probably be "A short history of records on the Appalachian Trail".I found the first part very interesting. It consists of portraits and accounts of the various hikers and runners that set FKTs (Fastest Knwon Times) on the AT. It's structured in chronological order, one chapter each. Jennifer weaves in some of her own experiences here and there and describes how she'd come to know these people,, but the chapters' focus is them and their record attempts.Jennifer's own attempt is covered more or less one chapter like the others (neither much longer nor more detailed than that of the others), followed by more chapters of those who set new FKTs after her.There are also chapters about related topics, like sports psychology or a chapter discussing the more technical details of setting a record (e.g. GPS tracking, publicity, honor system, etc.).What I found tiresome, after some time, is the repeated and ongoing focus on setting FKTs. The last ones shaved mere hours off the previous FKT, those after Jennifer being world class athletes and with massive support. While the main topic of the book (Endurance) would apply to anyone hiking through the AT, in whatever time, this one focuses on an aspect that's probably in reach for only 1000 people on earth.I'm currently reading "AWOL on the Appalachian Trail" by David Miller, which is a far more personal and detailed account of trying to master the trail by someone who is not a world class athlete. I am enjoying this a lot more.

Maybe I misunderstood the title, but I didn't really find any practical tips for improving endurance. There's a lot of history & interviews with other ultra walkers / runners in the pursuit of Fastest Known Times on US trails. I did finish the book & there are some interesting anecdotes, but there's nothing actionable.