Lyle Ray Irwin, The Original STEP Founder, and Patent Holder, Passes Away
Posted: July 28, 2020 in Other News
Ray Irwin
By: Norm Cates
Lyle Ray Irwin, The Original STEP Founder and Patent Holder, and partner with Rich Boggs in CourtSouth and then in a partnership with Rich, Lou Off and Gerry Alles in Sportslife in Atlanta, has passed away after a 6 + month battle with lung cancer. Six years ago, Ray won a very tough battle with throat cancer. Then, after surviving that cancer for 6+ years, he was hit with a second battle with cancer in January, 2020. Sadly, this time it was lung cancer, which proved to be more than he could defeat, and Lyle Ray Irwin died the night of July 19th/20th.
Ray was a really special guy as evidenced by his wife Louise’s comments to me during our interview for our August Cover Story. During the interview, I asked Louise the following question: “What was it like being married to Lyle Ray Irwin, a truly great American entrepreneur, who was also a highly qualified Certified Public Accountant?” Louise’s comments summarize what a truly great human being Ray Irwin truly and actually was. Louise commented “Well, I always said that I didn’t know that marriage could be so much fun! He had such a good sense of humor. He was interesting. He read all the time. He was actually our book “guru”. Everybody would always ask “What’s Ray reading?” We had some really good times. He loved to do a lot of things. He was a great Father. You would not know that he invented things, as CPA’s are not exactly known for their imagination. But, Ray had a great imagination. And, he had visions of things that he wanted to get done and he did them. He was just a very kind and simple man. Oh my gosh… Ray was very easy to be with.”
Club Insider – Louise, Ray told me about how one night Ray was watching TV and your son, Richard who was very young at the time was on the floor playing with Legos. It was at that very moment that Ray invented The Original STEP, a great product which they went on to get a U.S. Patent for. The Original STEP Company was founded and he and Rich went on to sell the STEP to over 25,000 clubs and fitness centers and businesses locations world-wide. Without a doubt The Original STEP truly became a world-wide success in clubs around the globe. So, at that moment, when he saw his son Richard playing with Legos, the light went on for Ray. At that exact moment Ray invented The Original STEP, a piece of equipment that’s not only still in clubs around the world, it’s s also in homes around the world, where home exercisers use it. WOW! What an achievement!
Ladies and gentlemen… Club Insider invites you NOW to make plans to read the Life Story of Lyle Ray Irwin in our upcoming August, 2020 edition. And, as I always say, folks: “STAY TUNED!”
