Long before she became a familiar face on social media platforms, Sahara grew up surrounded by the ocean and the excitement of professional surfing. Born in Australia, she was the daughter of celebrated big-wave Surfer Tony Ray, whose career took the family across different parts of the world.
Her childhood was spent traveling between Australia, California, and Hawaii. In an interview with GQ, the model explained that she grew up “primarily in Santa Cruz” and spent winters in Hawaii with her father.
“I used to travel all over the world with him while he was competing in the pipe masters [and] big wave competitions,” she recalled.
Her father’s sporting achievements were considerable. According to the Encyclopedia of Surfing, Tony was ranked No. 11 in the world in 1992, the year after Sahara was born. Sahara initially shared her father’s passion for surfing but eventually stepped away from the sport as a teenager to concentrate on modeling and fashion.
