Having a person poking along in the lead of a mob of cattle is generally good. If they’re a bit fresh, that person sets the pace and stops them from trotting. Too much trotting gets them hot, makes them lose condition, and provides the opportunity for one or more to turn into cranky cattle. On the other hand, if there’s no natural lead animals in the mob, they will sometimes settle in and follow a bike for hours.
Having 3 people up near the lead on a small mob like this means you have a problem child! In this case it was a heifer that decided she didn’t want company a couple of times, and tried to gallop off into the Great Beyond. She did get brought back to the mob each time, and she did simmer down and walk in normally after this, but her tag number has been written in the note book!
Wild dogs/dingoes have been annoying some of these cattle, pushing a small mob of them over the Great Barrier Fence a few weeks ago, so one possible explanation this time, is that she could have still been traumatised from them.