Troy Sears is a San Diego native with a passion for sailing. He's also a father of three with a need to provide for his family, which is why he chose to manage a pest control business for ten years instead of following his life long dream. As reliable as he was, he just wasn't happy. Tony's story starts with his ties to the San Diego Yacht Club, a membership that ultimately led him to actualize his dream career. Docked on the Yacht Club premises were two 80-foot America's Cup boats, boats that would be perfect for the business he wanted to start. The only problem was that these boats were largely unavailable, and way out of his price range. Until one day when the wind in Tony's sails changed. In 2003 the Swiss won the Cup which meant that the race would return to Europe, making the boats available for purchase in California. Tony jumped on the auction and bought both boats for a fraction of the price they might retail for new. In order to start his dream company, Next Level Sailing, he had to make the decision to sell his pest control company and journey into the uncharted waters of self-employment. Luckily Tony had some good financial connections and was able to find an investor to sign on as a silent partner, thereby alleviating some of his financial burdens.

Getting the boats ready for commercial use proved to be quite a challenge, requiring a lot of self-educating and expensive trips to Washington. Until Tony had gotten approval to use the ships commercially, he was only allowed to take out small groups of six or less. Even through all of the grueling legal proceedings, Tony remained passionate about sailing, and enjoyed every ounce of energy he put in to getting his business off the ground. Almost twelve months later the boats got the OK to take out more than six passengers at a time, and Tony was ready to become a large-scale success.

If you're interested in getting aboard a Next Level sail, we should warn you that it isn't exactly cheap. Tony charges almost a $100 a person for a two-hour sail, or $2000 to rent the entire boat for four hours. Customers in the past have been more than willing to cough up the dough, reasoning that the experience of being on a high end boat cruising through San Diego's scenic waterfront that includes sights like America's Cup Harbor, Coronado Bay Bridge, North Island Naval Airstation, the San Diego Convention Center, the downtown San Diego Skyline, Cabrillo National Monument, Star of India and other historic ships, and ocean wildlife, such as seals, sea lions, pelicans and gulls.

Since the beginning, Next Level Sailing has had to rely very little on traditional marketing thanks to MTV's The Real World. MTV approached Tony about having the San Diego cast work for his company, and he jumped on the chance for free publicity to millions of viewers each week. His strategy for publicity proved to be successful, resulting in reservations from around the U.S. in addition to almost a dozen foreign countries. He's also gotten press from CNN, CBS, and the Travel Channel. And Tony doesn't stop there. The 11 story sails are perfect advertising space and bring in more than $20,000 a month. Regardless of all the free press, Next Level relies mostly on word of mouth, one of the best ways to generate new business, and proof that hard work pays off. Next Level Sailing is a great example of a business that's succeeding due to the genuine passion of the owner and employees who pursued, at times, a seemingly unlikely dream.