Bio
CTF name: Don P
Real name: Don Peterson
Age: 36
Current city: Essex, CT
Hometown: I consider Buffalo, NY my hometown although I was born in CT and lived in Ridgefield, CT until I was 4-years-old....then shuffled off to Buffalo from then until graduating college
Family members: Wife and 2 daughters, Mother & Father/"PaPa Bear" (Buffalo,NY) and my sister who lives in Virginia just outside of D.C. with her family
Occupation: Safety, Health & Environmental Professional (Safety Engineer, Industrial Hygienist & Environmental Consultant)



1.You hold the record for the most posts on the site. (Well, your count is starting over after the account deletion blunder I made.) What is it that appeals most to you about talking about fishing online?
For me the biggest draw is that CTF is one stop shopping for a large group of people who share the same passion I have for fishing and the outdoors in general. Outdoorsmen/women are a special breed of twisted people who know how to enjoy the simple things in life. Reading, seeing and sharing real time reports and pics with people and discussing common issues and experiences while busting some stones along the way is tough to beat.

2. You break a lot of balls on the board. Do you have any good stories of how a friend or fishing buddy has turned the tables and broken your balls?
Fishermen are notorious ballbusters....it's a constant give and take here on the site and on each other's boats.

"Good story"....well there was this one time when I busted a guy's stones so bad he kicked me off his fishing website....lol

One memorable experience is me talking trash prior to a CTF Blackfish Bash a few years ago with a $50/boat sidebet. I was stirring it up pretty good on the site prior to the event and was constantly requesting "crisp 50s." Well as fishing goes I didn't place as well as others. It was deservedly rubbed in my face pretty hard and pops up here and there even to this day...."crisp 50s."

3. As with any active poster, you will have some people who like you some, and some who do not. Does it bother you that some people may not like you?
The short "shocking" answer is....NO ! : )

I am a pretty carefree guy who speaks my mind and likes to have fun. I feel too many people take life way too seriously. There are times in life to be serious, but definitely not on a fishing website. This is ctfisherman.....not Matchmaker.com

I also think that people who don't like me on the site would like me in person....you've said so yourself Mitch! : )


"PaPa Bear"

4. You've shared some of the fishing adventures of you and your dad. Tell us something about your dad "PaPa Bear" that we probably don't know about him.
Yes, my Father and I have a lot of fun fishing and spending time together....whichever coast...fresh or salt.

I think one of my Father's most distinctive characteristics is that he is the most honest and truthful person I know.

Don P. (3rd from left) and Papa Bear (far right)

5. Publisher Mitch P. walks away from the site and hands the entire operation over to you. What are some things you'd do differently? What are some things you'd keep the same?
Oh God help us all!

I think the site is good as it is/was. The biggest thing that I would change would be keeping it a free open public forum rather than going to a paid site. With that said I do support your decision Mitch and I wish you and CTF the best.



6. What got you interested in fishing?
Definitely my Father.....as his Father did for him.....for fishing and all outdoor pursuits. My Grandfather and Grandmother are down in Florida. Although my Grandfather can no longer physically fish with us.....all three of us partake in the after fishing trip fish stories when we are all in Florida together.

7. In life, describe your biggest:
1. Fear
2. Accomplishment
3. Goal in the next 5 years
Biggest Fear: Dying without enough tackle! In all seriousness...my biggest fear would be for anything bad to happen to my daughters. I know people who have lost their children due to accidents and/or illness. It is something I can't imagine having to cope with.

Biggest Accomplishment: Again...I would have to say my daughters. They are the most polite, smart and well behaved kids I know. I know every parent says that, but mine really are....lol I am very proud of them and love them dearly.

Biggest Goal in the next 5 years: I am not a big checklist goal kind of person. I personally find that approach a little too restrictive. I see my life more in the terms of a forward moving evolution. You have to be adaptive, learn from mistakes, take advantage of opportunities, have high ethics and work hard. All that being said......my "5 year goal" would be to continue with my professional development to better provide for my family and for personal fulfillment.



8. How do you feel about the proposed saltwater license?
I buy a saltwater license every year when I go fishing in Florida. I would be supportive of a CT saltwater license if the money were to truly go to Fisheries Management (CT-DEP, Fishery Studies, funding for more DEP Officers, etc...). I have zero support for having the money go into a general fund to an already over taxing and misallocating CT government.

I wouldn't mind spending the marginal money for a saltwater license. I spend thousands a year pursuing fishing.....hundreds alone for fuel on a 1 day offshore trip, but I have no need to throw the state of CT another cent.....just to give the general fund another penny to mismanage.

9. Is there anything you posted on the site that you regretted afterward? If so, what was it about?
No...no regrets.

10. Describe what it's like raising two daughters.
WOW!....that's a tough one. How does one truly describe something like that which effects every aspect of one's being. Like I said in question #7...raising my 2 daughters with my wife is my biggest accomplishment I ever had and will continue to have every day of my life. They are great little companions in life. It's a two way street with them. As I help raise them they help me grow more as a person as well.

LOTSSSSssssssss of people continually ask me...."So are you going to try for a son?" : ) Not a chance! We are definitely DONE and completely happy with the two children we have. I am blessed to have daughters that LOVE the outdoors. If they were two prissy little pink shop-aholics I would go out of my mind, but they are well rounded with academics, athletics, outdoor interests, FISHING, boating, beaching, swimming, hiking, camping, biking......and of course high fashion and shopping! : )

I can't imagine my life without them.



11. What is the last concert you attended?
I have never been much of a concert goer. My last "real" concert would probably have been the Stones in D.C., but wait a minute.....I have two daughters....so the Cheetah Girls or High School Musical don't count do they?!!!!!!!..lol

12. Tell us a good story about how a non-fishing co-worker or friend reacted to some of your fishing-crazy behavior.
Oh...it never stops. EVERYONE knows of my addiction. Guys at work have checked my thumbs to rate how good of a weekend I have had based on the amount of gill raker cuts I have on my thumbs.

I start work fairly early....in the office by 6:30AM at the latest every day. Co-workers always come in stating things like...."it's too early"....."getting up this early is the toughest part of the day"...etc. They just shake their head at me when I tell them things like "I just finished waxing my boat before work this morning"......"I got up at 3AM and went icefishing for walleye this morning before work"...."I went striper fishing late last night and into this morning, got off the boat, showered and came in to work"......etc.....

I also know non-fishing friends and co-workers who check the site every so often just to see obsessed knuckleheads talking about their adventures. They get a kick out of it.

13. What are your top 3 tips for catching big stripers:
#1- Know your tides and how they relate to your fishing spot. I have spots that catch at all tides, some that catch only at incoming, some that catch only at outgoing and some that catch at only specifc phases of each tide.

#2- Spend time researching through charts, educated guesses, experience and trial and error to find your specific spots to fish. Sometimes you can be off your mark by only 10 feet and not catch.

#3- Be confident to stick with your methods and madness, yet be adaptive enough to change with changing conditions.

....and #4.....if you can't put it all together....just book a charter with our resident Blaine Anderson!

14. What is your dream fishing trip destination?
OHHHHHHHHHhhhhhhhhhh....so many options.....

Going to Costa Rica and fishing tight to the coast for roosterfish on spinning tackle has always been a dream of mine.

Of course going to Australia and catching a BIG dogtooth tuna off the Willis Islands and experiencing the Great Barrier Reef would be awesome as well.

.....again....so many options.........

15. Have you formed any real life friendships as a result of ctfisherman.com?
ABSOLUTELY!....too many to list....and never enough time to fish with them all as much as I would like.

16. What would you do to solve the immigration issues in our country?
Wow!...another pretty heavy topic for a fishing site.

I don't pretend to have all the answers.

I am opposed to locking our borders. If that were the case not many of us would be here now.

If someone wants to legally immigrate into the US with the intent to make a better life for them and their family by being a good citizen I am all for it.

I would then have to say......make the process of legal immigration more user friendly while enforcing the deportation of illegal immigrants.

17. Do you have any scary incidents surrounding boating/fishing?
Yes I have had some scary incidents in my 36 years of boating.

About 12 years ago....fishing L.I.S. about midnight in a ripping current for stripers with my Father and two uncles in my 20' center console. With that much beef in the boat it wasn't uncommon for some water to occasionally come onto the deck through the self draining scuppers....then drain back out. At one point the water came on the deck and after a while we noticed it didn't happen to drain back out. My Father and I told my uncles to stop crowding us and for them to head to the bow to level out the boat. The water still didn't drain and actually started getting deeper on the deck. I pulled some hatches and found the entire void under the deck was FILLED with water.....and kept on coming. We started the motor, started the bilge pumps and headed for shore. As the bow raised a little bit with powering up the transom corners squatted down within inches of the waterline with the water pitching aft. We motored down to a steady crawl towards shore and finally placed the hull on a sandbar at low tide in front of our cottage. The transom livewell overflow standpipe malfunctioned and rose to a level that reached an electrical chase that ended up filling our below deck void and then the boat itself.

18. What do you watch on TV?
I am not a big tv guy.

I love watching fishing and hunting shows...Offshore Adventures on Go Fisch, Spanish Fly, On The Water, Walker's Cay Chronicles, shark shows, etc..... I also watch Dangerous Catch, Discovery Channel, 20/20, etc...

As far as prime time I am not a faithful follower of any shows. I generally watch whatever my wife and daughters are watching as a part of family time.....so lots of Disney Channel and chic flick Desperate Housewives, Dancing with the Stars and crap like that.

19. What does your wife think of your fishing addiction? Does she enjoy the water?
My wife thinks I am absolutely obsessed with fishing...and she is absolutely right!

She does enjoy the water, boat rides, sunning, swimming, beaching, lunch and dinner cruises, etc....but she is not a fisherwoman and is a fair weather boater. With our newly purchased larger boat....a 25' walkaround vs our previous 20' center console....we now have more room, a hard piped toilet, a cabin, etc..... My wife, daughters and I plan to spend more time boating together than in the past.



20. What fish are you still chasing?
I have been fortunate enough to catch some real quality fish in my lifetime both fresh and salt. I am thankful for every fish I catch....big or small.

I would have to say I am still chasing a BIG mako or thresher.


Noodles/Barnacle Bill, Don P., PaPa Bear and Kevin Bova with a striper mount Don P. had made for Kevin with help from contributions for CTF members. Details.