When there's so many coming and going, do they bond with any one of them less? How many typically are entered in one of these rides?
The rides are usually limited to no more then 60 riders. The one in May usually has around 40. Most riders ride in at least pairs, so when you ride by yourself, no your horse doesn't particularly bond with any, unless he is parked next to one in camp. But a group of horses passing you and then going on out of sight does tend to make them get anxious about where the others are going.
I haven't figured out if it's best to time out at the front and just try to stay in front of the pack, or be at the back where there is no chance of horses passing you to often.
THERE's pros and cons to either place.
In my experience, the horses usually calm back down once the others are out of sight. But there are places where you can see pretty far down the trail so it can take awhile. I like finding a "hole" in the pack where you can't see the rider ahead of you or behind you. But it takes about 5 miles to get eveyone spread out enough. The towards the end you get bunched back up because you all basically come back in at the same time.
Becky