Zahab at the Marathon des Sables

In February, the Canadian dipped his hand into the Red Sea to end a 111-day, 7,000-km run across the Sahara Desert.  He has conquered terrain in the Arctic, Asia, Africa, and South America.

"I'm motivated by challenge," he says.  "I love to challenge myself, push myself, see what limits I might have, learn about myself physically and mentally and just see what am I capable of."

Zahab is an ultramarathoner. Running, biking and trekking have taken him to some of the world's most remote locations. He says the adventures also help him educate people about international aid.

National Geographic is set to release "Running the Sahara," a documentary of Zahab's epic run across the Sahara with two other ultramarathoners, narrated by Matt Damon.  Meanwhile, Zahab is planning his next adventure for 2009. It's a $1-million journey from Nunavut to the North Pole to fight climate change.

From blowing smoke to kicking up dust

Before 2000, Zahab was a smoker, not a runner.  But a magazine article on adventure racing changed things. "I was so blown away by these people and what they were able to put their bodies through," he says.  "I just wanted to learn about that and see if I could do it."

Two months later, Zahab was in his first race.  By December 2003, he was seriously committed to running and making a name for himself.

Still, he insists that he's no one special.

"I'm not an elite athlete.  I'm a regular person who is just so stubborn and drives himself to exceed any limits.  I say this stuff is 90 per cent mental and the rest of it's all in my head, and I believe that," he says.

Adventure racers from around the world tackle the planet's most brutal environments.  Competitors often run carrying all their food and personal gear while navigating, climbing, paddling, and running extreme distances.  Zahab has not only entered these contests, but has thrived and become a world-class athlete.

"Running is what I do," he says. "It's how I express myself."

Zahab running in the Yukon Arctic Ultra marathon

When he's not racing through the wild, Zahab works as a motivational speaker and personal trainer.

Running for a cause

Racing has become more than just a personal test, he says. Running is a way for him to support his favourite charities. Zahab says he wants to use his projects to help people understand global problems.

"The more I learn about our world - in particular, Africa - the more I want to do," he says. "Hopefully by raising awareness, people will educate themselves about what's going on [and] that turns into money."

In August, Zahab ran 400 km along Canada's three coasts: east, west, and Arctic.  He says his home country is one of the world's most magnificent locations. With his upcoming journey to the North Pole, Zahab says he wants to "showcase the beauty of Canada."

The last leg

Zahab's childhood home is small-town Carp, Ontario, 40 km west of Ottawa.  He grew up participating in equestrian sports. His love of riding led to a career teaching riders and training horses, before extreme running grabbed him and wouldn't let go.

His younger brother John is a strength and conditioning coach in Ottawa. He and Ray used to have different priorities, he says.  "In high school, we weren't really athletes.  We were partiers, if anything."

Family matters Panicked or proud? Ray's family has had quite the emotional rollercoster ride when it comes to his ultrarunning. Requires FlashPlayer

But John says his brother has the right attitude for success. 

"He's always had the personality that whatever he's gotten into, he's gotten into 110 per cent," John says.  "I think his personality was conducive to being very successful in the sports that he's doing.   Had he picked something else, he probably would have been successful in that as well."

Running multiple marathons every day for months has had its challenges.  Six thousand kilometres into the Sahara run, Zahab faced his toughest hurdle. He was in intense pain from tendonitis and thought he couldn't go on. But he forced himself to get up every morning and persevere.

"If there's anything left in me at all to keep going, then I will.  It drives me to the end of the race.  The pain goes away," he says.  "I knew that I would regret it if I went home and thought that there were anything left in me at all, that I didn't try my absolute maximum.  One foot in front of the other, and eventually things got better."

Related Links Ray's Website Running the Sahara Website International Association of Ultrarunners