Gary started ice skating at the age of three, often spending cold winter days skating with his family on the local cranberry bogs. Soon after, he began playing hockey in the youth league, primarily as a left-winger. A rather uncoordinated kid, Gary always struggled, but finally made the higher division (B) at the age of 10 and in his first game of the Division B season scored two goals. An auto accident a week later knocked him out of all sports for the next ten years (Gary also played baseball, basketball and soccer).

While at college Gary started back up again, joining a local pick-up group and forming and coaching an intramural team. After college, he moved to the Washington, DC area and soon joined DC's gay hockey team, the Nationals. Gary played with the Nationals for about four years, participating in several tournaments, including the Gay Games in NYC in 1994 and in Amsterdam in 1998.

After the Games in 1998 Gary underwent a couple of surgeries which, again, put him on the shelf for several years. He moved to Fairfield, CT in late 2005 and resumed playing hockey in 2008, joining the NYCGHA and playing on the Hotshots as an alternate for the Fall 2008 season. Then in the Spring 2009 season has was a full-time member of the Hotshots and participated in the Chelsea Challenge during the summer.