Name: An Evening with Susan Norman
Start: 2026-06-09T18:00:00-06:00
Location: 232 Walnut St, Fort Collins, CO, United States, Colorado 80524

Join us at Old Firehouse Books to welcome Susan Norman as she discusses her latest memoir release, Risk: A Life Saved by the River! Susan will be in store on Tuesday, June 9th from 6:00-7:00 PM to read a few excerpts before opening the floor to discussion and questions. If you'd like to purchase a copy ahead of time you can through our website or in store! We can't wait to see you there!
About Risk: A Life Saved by the River:
A compelling narrative about a pioneering woman's connection to wild rivers as a whitewater world champion, and how the journey heals past and current childhood trauma.
Alternating between two time periods, Risk is about Sue Norman's journey as a pioneer in international whitewater kayaking and rafting competition. Outdoor adventure helped the author cope with the trauma of her mother's diagnosis of acute multiple sclerosis when she was five, which rapidly forced her family into poverty and separation.
As an adult, Sue was thrust into becoming a first-time parent after menopause to her four-year-old nephew. Her nephew's early years were spent with biological parents who struggled with addiction and mental illness. Does Sue have what it takes to parent a child considered to be at risk?
Risk explores how pursuing "good risk" through adventure can help one escape, and face, their fears.
About Susan Norman:
Susan Norman is the author of RISK, a memoir about extreme whitewater competition and extreme parenting, and the connection between outdoor adventure and resilience. She began writing soon after retiring from a career in hydrology with the US Forest Service and becoming a first-time parent as the guardian of her young nephew. Sue is a graduate from Colorado State University, earning her bachelors degree in Watershed Science.
A former National and World Champion in both whitewater kayaking and rafting, she continues to coach youth paddlers and has become a vocal advocate for public lands as Board President of the Sierra Nevada Alliance, and a member of the Outdoor Alliance Grasstops Collective. She lives in Lake Tahoe, California, with her son, partner Lisa, and their two dogs.