CTF name: Riptide
Real name: Alison Varian
Age: Not going there! Let’s just say I’ve been around the block a few times.
Current City: Guilford, CT
Hometown: Watertown
Family members: Husband, Garth
Occupation: Purchaser

Interview by fuzzy2u

1. What is your earliest fishing memory?
I grew up on Candlewood Lake. My grandfather was an engineer and real estate broker for CL&P and worked on the lake project. After the lake was filled, the employees of CL&P were given the opportunity to purchase land at Holiday Point on the Sherman end of the lake. That was in 1928. Our family still has the property, but boy, has the lake changed! I remember catching fish there with my Dad when I was 4. Fishing is what my Dad and I did together. Freudian thoughts anyone?

2. What’s your most memorable fishing memory?
My Aunt had a house on an island on Rainbow Lake in the Adirondacks. When I wasn’t at Candlewood, I was there. It was an awesome lake for catching big pike. Very late one night I took the canoe out to go fishing. It was a perfectly still and clear night with a full moon shining down. I had been out on the lake for an hour or two and was sitting quietly enjoying the night and watching the moonlight reflecting on the water. No houses, no people, no boats, no manmade noises. It was very quiet.

Off in the distance I noticed a wake in the water moving towards my canoe. I continued to sit quietly and watched as it got closer and closer. At first I thought it might be a muskrat, but as it got closer I realized it was bigger. Much bigger. It came right up to my boat next to where I was sitting, paused for a second or two, then started rising out of the water as if it was going to jump into the boat. It was a large adult beaver. That close to me the thing looked bigger than a bear! Yikes! I shifted in my seat, trying not to have a panic attack, wondering what I should do if it leapt into the boat. Double yikes!!

As I shifted I was looking directly at the beaver only a foot away from me. He suddenly focused on me and I swear his eyes bugged out and he got a shocked expression on his face. He dove and slapped the water next to the boat with his tail, splashing me. His tail hitting the water sounded like a rifle shot! Their tails aren’t small either!

With that, in a large circle all around my boat, hundreds of bait fish leaped out of the water. With the moon shining off their sides, and sparkling on the ripples they made, it was awe-inspiring. Other beavers in the area started slapping their tails in response. At each slap the baitfish on the lake would leap out of the water. More and more beavers slapped their tails in response. The sound slowly trailed off into the distance and went echoing off in the mountains. Large animals that were startled by all the noise could still be heard crashing through the brush on the side of the lake. I just sat there in awe. Wow!! I can’t remember if I caught anything that night but the memory of the sight and sound of that event is still vividly clear. Nature is so cool!!!



3. What was your first boat?
An old 1960’s Aluminum runabout with a 40hp Evinrude. It was beat when we got it, but still ran well, and we had a blast with it! Kept it at Candlewood and learned to ski off it.

4. How did you decide to buy your current boat?
My thoughts on boat buying- when you narrow down the features that are important to you on a boat, the size you want, and a price range, you end up with very few buying choices. I have a downeast-style boat, a 24’ Privateer with an outboard. I looked at that boat for two years. It had a worn out engine and was overpriced, but was exactly what I was looking for. I kept looking at other boats, but always came back to liking this one better. Couldn’t find one like it in my price range, so I bit the bullet, negotiated a slightly lower price, bought the boat and threw a new 200hp Honda on it. It may not be fancy, but it can take some nasty weather while keeping me dry, and it’s a great fishing platform. My commercial fishbox makes an excellent table for appetizers on impromptu raft-ups too. I love my boat!

The man I bought it from was in the Coast Guard Auxiliary and they used the boat for search and rescue. He was diagnosed with lung cancer and couldn’t boat anymore. A very sad situation, I went to his wake the other day.

Live life to the fullest! You never know when it might be cut short.

5. How did you get involved in the Power Squadron and what is your position (rank)?
I’m now Commander of the New Haven Power Squadron. Eek! How did that happen? I’ve always been a big proponent of boating safety and education, and that’s the United States Power Squadrons main goals. It’s the largest non-profit boating organization in the country and has been honored by three US presidents for its civic contributions. I also do Coast Guard Vessel Safety Inspections. It’s a great way to meet people, and help make boating safer for everyone on the water.


Man overboard drill.

6. What is you favorite part of CTF?
The people! While a lot of my friends have boats, hardly any go fishing. Before I discovered CTF most of my fishing was done alone. From CTF members, I’ve gained a tremendous amount of fishing knowledge, and now have people I can ask to go fishing with me! Thanks CTF!



7. How did you get into shooting and how often do you shoot?
Memories! I grew up around some wonderful sportsmen! I remember my grandfather teaching me how to shoot a beebee gun in his basement as soon as I was old enough to hold a gun steady. He raised Llewellin English setters and was a respected sportsman.
I use to hunt pheasants with my Mom and Dad. I got my hunters license when I was fourteen, and a carry permit when I was eighteen. Now I just like to target or skeet shoot. In the summer I am out on the boat a lot, but I try to set aside Sunday mornings so my husband and I can go to breakfast at our shooting club and target shoot together.

8. Does your husband fish?
Well, I have a picture that proves he’s caught a fish on my boat!
But that’s about the only time he’s gone fishing with me. He grew up on the sound, always had boats, his Dad was a captain. It’s still mind boggling to me that he never had any interest in fishing. Go figure! He does enjoy eating fish, so it all works out.


Husband Garth with a bluefish.

9. What activities do you and your husband enjoy together?
Everything! Shooting. Dancing. Traveling. Taking care of my boat! Everything that is except caving and fishing. LOL

10. What was your most embarrassing moment (the good one)?
Geez. Should I tell? Oh, what the heck. My husband is a hardcore caver. We went to New Mexico to go “wild” caving together. It was my first time. Since it was on federal park land, all trips were conducted by the park service. The trip consisted of me, my husband, two park rangers, eight state troopers and a Sherpa guide from Tibet. Tough crowd for a newbie!

We met in a desolate area, hiked up a canyon, then down the other side into a dry creek bed. In the middle of the wash was a chained and locked manhole cover. The rangers, one of them a no nonsense Indian woman, unlocked the cover and said, “Go down”. Yikes!! I let all the guys go first and hung back with the other ranger who was also a newbie. The manhole cover was covering a four foot diameter well that went down about ten feet. At the bottom was a “rabbit hole”. You had to get down on your belly and wiggle for about twenty feet, and then you came to what my husband fondly refers to as a squeeze. After that it opened up into a large cavern.

I can’t believe I’m telling this…… So, I go last. Everyone else is now in the cavern waiting for me to get through the squeeze. And here I come. Except I get stuck. Well, not exactly, rather the tank top I had on got stuck. I was moving forward, but the shirt wasn’t. You get the picture. I stopped and after a while was able to wiggle backwards a bit and “regroup”, not an easy thing to do in a squeeze. The entire time this was happening, I had a roomful of guys shining their headlamps on the problem area. Men!! LOL.

After that, things went smoothly. The rest of the trip was awesome! Caving is fascinating! I don’t have the endurance or the agility needed for the kind of caving my husband enjoys doing. The two things we agree not to do together- caving and fishing.

11. What is your favorite fish?
I seem to be hooked on sea bass. Not only is it a rush to get one of the big males with their funny hump heads and electric blue colors, but they also taste great! I discovered Fuzzy2U’s fluke rigs were deadly for sea bass. When he was making rigs, I would hound him for them. Now I make my own.

12. How did you get involved in the Shellfish Commission and what is your role?
I wanted to get involved in the community, and I thought, how political can a clam be? Besides, I like critters. I’m now chairman of the Guilford Shellfish Commission. It’s interesting, I’m always learning new things, and I enjoy working with all the people involved, from the State to the commercial guys. Guilford has a very good shellfish program and I’m proud to be part of it.

Our newest project is trying to raise razor clams. Ever eat them? They’re yummy! We use to have a lot of them in Guilford but they are becoming scarce. SeaGrant had a million young razor clams they were giving away. Working with the Sound School in New Haven, we picked up 100,000 razors and are trying to grow them. We’ve already had about 60% mortality, but the rest, at last report, were doing well and had doubled to tripled in size. The cool part is that unlike other clams, these guys swim. The man who is running the project for us says when you look into the tanks they remind him of a swarm of mosquitoes. LOL Not sure how this project is going to end, but the goal is to release them into Guilford waters when they reach a size large enough to decrease their chance of predation by crabs. Cross your fingers for us.

13. What are your favorite bands?
I’m pretty eclectic when it comes to music, but I always seem to gravitate back to the classic rock bands that I grew up with.

14. What is your fantasy vacation?
Something that involves shooting fish while drinking margaritas riding in a hot air balloon? Never mind.

15. Other than fishing, what other hobbies do you have?
Shooting, photography, dancing, jewelry making, rock hounding, hot air ballooning, lap dancing, horseback riding. (Just checking to see if anyone is paying attention)


Catching blackfish with Crazy Ivan and Skunked A lot.

16. You're appointed CT DEP commissioner. What three things do you do right out of the gate to improve the fishery in CT?
Hey! I have enough stress already!! What are you asking me this for? There are no easy answers, especially the fishery in the sound. For every good idea there are a hundred reasons why it won’t work- from non-conforming states, existing laws, lobbyists, budgets and… Ouch, my head is starting to hurt.

17. What would you do if you won the lottery?
Help a lot of people and have a roaring good time!

18. If money were no object, what boat would you buy?
I’d spiffy up the one I have.

19. What three things would you bring to a deserted island?
My husband, a fishing pole, and tequila. Don’t ask.

20. What’s the best fishing product you’ve bought in the last five years?
Do fishfinders and chartplotters count? I’ve always used hand me down rods and reels. I finally bought a new Shimano Tekota 500 reel and paired it with a medium action Shakespeare ugly stick. I was so happy- I bought another! Being able to depend on the tackle you use is great! Two of my favorite items are a fish hook extractor and boga grips. Oh, and Fuzzy2u’s killer fluke rigs.