Late in 1998, Ray made a life-changing decision to leave a pack-a-day smoking habit and very unhealthy life choices behind him. On New Year’s Day 2000, he decided to go hiking with his brother John and has never looked back.

New to the sport of running in 2004, ultra-marathoning took Ray from the cold north of Canada to the Amazon jungle. But it was the Sahara desert that ultimately captured Ray’s heart.

After witnessing and experiencing the water crisis and malaria epidemic in Africa, Ray decided to dedicate his future adventures to raising awareness and funding for causes that he supports and believes in..Ray is a member of the board of Directors of the Ryan’s Well Foundation, is the official Athletic Ambassador to the ONExONE organization, and is a representative of SpreadTheNet and the founder of Impossible2Possible.

On January 7, 2009 Ray and two other Canadians, broke the world speed record from Hercules Inlet to the Geographic South Pole. In the process, Ray became the first person to trek to the South Pole on this traditional 1130 km route solely on foot. This expedition provided young people with an interactive platform and educational resources through a ground-breaking website.