Jennifer Pharr Davis has hiked the 2,175-mile Appalachian Trail twice before. She has even written a book about the long slog and its endless rewards and challenges. This summer, she hit the trail yet again with the goal of going even faster than her 2008 time of 57 days and some hours. (Most through-hikers take six months or more). But that’s not all. She also wanted to beat the official record of 47 days, 13 hours and 31 minutes, set by Andrew Thompson in 2005. The New York Times caught up with her part-way through the trek with an encouraging report. This week, she succeeded in her record attempt, finishing in 46 days, 11 hours, 20 minutes. That translates to an average of 47 miles a day.