"Great safety awareness - good eye for details. All workshops were interesting and interactive. Great evaluation skills. Very kind and tactful but to the point. Good leadership skills. People skills are very much a strength. Very mature, professional, down to earth."
-Julie Goodnight, CHA Certified Master Level Instructor/
Clinician-Program Director

"Heidi has a good knowledge of theory and what is being taught.
She made very helpful corrections, excellent evaluations of all lessons, very organized, excellent eye contact - she sees the whole group. Excellent communication skills, extremely professional,
very reassuring and positive."
- Judy Kronenberger CHA Certified Master Level Instructor/ACI

Heidi's experience with horses started when she was a young child growing up in New Hampshire. After many wonderful hours trail riding at a local ranch she was “hooked” and realized that horses needed to be part of her life.

By the age of 13 she had saved $350 and purchased her first horse. Thunder was a pure white, 7 year old, 16-hand grade horse. During the summer of 1974 Thunder became her primary teacher. “We spent most of that summer in a rearing or reverse situation, with him stating that he couldn’t possibly leave the farm without his equine buddies.” Equally stubborn and determined to trail ride with her new friend, Heidi would walk him to the top of the mountain and then get on and ride him home. As with most professionals, she looks back and realizes education is been bliss - "If I had known then . . . . . . ”

She spent most of her teen years at the trail riding ranch where Thunder was boarded. In addition to helping lead the rides Heidi also enjoyed competing at local horse shows in Western Pleasure and Gymkhana.

For her 16th birthday her parents surprised her with a 6 month-old Appaloosa colt she had come to love at the ranch. He was hers to raise and train. These two horses became Heidi’s first lesson horses in 1994 when Maple Ridge Stable was established in Southern Vermont.

Maple Ridge is now a training, boarding and instructional facility. Over the years it has seen many changes and experienced much growth. Maintaining the facility and caring for the horses would not have been possible without the commitment of the entire family. Heidi's husband Rob and the three Potter children, Aaron, Chelsea and Tyler have contributed greatly to its success.

In 1997 Heidi took her first Centered Riding lesson with Senior Instructor, Lucile Bump, at Southmowing Stable. She immediately knew that this was what she was looking for. Teaching the principals of CR gave her a way to combine her training in the martial arts and her work with horses. “It all fit so perfectly, and the humans and horses loved it." By late 1998 Heidi was teaching and training full time, six days a week, in a newly constructed indoor arena. She became a Centered Riding Instructor herself in 1998 and is currently one of 15 Level III CR Instructor/Clinicians in the United States. Heidi has especially enjoyed her time studying with Centered Riding founder, Ms. Sally Swift, who resides in nearby Brattleboro, Vermont.

In June of 2000 Heidi became a CHA (Certified Horsemanship Association) Certified Instructor. Four years later she received her Master Level certification and in 2006 was honored to receive her Clinic Instructor certification. As Clinic Instructor Heidi participates in staffing clinics which evaluate and certify riding instructors around the U.S. CHA's program is designed to help ensure the safety of riding programs and the ethical treatment of horses. Heidi has also co-taught vaulting classes and worked with emotionally disturbed and learning disabled children. She found this work especially rewarding. In 2005 Heidi became a CHA Certified Level II Recreational Vaulting Coach and Assistant Vaulting Clinic Instructor.

Heidi attended a John Lyons symposium in the early 90's and got her first look at the "Natural Horsemanship" style of training. Since then she has spent a great deal of time studying and practicing a variety of these training methods. One of Heidi's first mentors was Mitzi Summers, who she met in 1998. Ms. Summers is a Level IV Centered Riding instructor, as well as a patient and caring trainer. In 2000 they spent a month of instructing and training together in New Zealand, which proved to be a very enjoyable and educational experience. Five years later, at the 2005 CHA conference in Seattle, Heidi observed a trainer named Jon Ensign from Montana. He was conducting a colt starting demonstration with a young filly. Heidi was greatly impressed with his obvious knowledge and experience. Jon's training style was calm, clear and consistent, which led him to a trusting partnership with the young horse in a very short amount of time. Heidi was so impressed that she decided to invite Jon to the Northeast. They have continued to work together ever since.

Heidi shares her 35 years of horse experience with her students, helping them gain new insights, build confidence and improve the overall relationship with their horses. She continues to train in the martial art discipline of Shorin Ryu and practices Ashtanga Yoga. Both of these activites have a strong influence on her work with horses and humans. The key element of her program, In Harmony With Horses, is to teach students to be mindful of themselves, realizing the effect their bodies and minds have on the horse. She is known for her gentle and empathetic approach to both horse and rider. Heidi instructs full time at Maple Ridge Stable, offering horsemanship classes and workshops in the winter, along with a full teaching and training schedule throughout the riding season. She travels to give clinics year round and offers instruction and training at other facilities.