It should be little surprise that of the photos remaining of
local legend Lola Galli, there are very few of her in which she is
not sitting or standing alongside a horse.
As anyone familiar with the famed roper and Tres Pinos native
can recall, the two were practically synonymous with each other. In
fact, a rare photograph of Lola Galli where she isn’t pictured on a
horse is not considered a true portrait of the skilled cowgirl,
because, well, that just isn’t Lola.
HOLLISTER
It should be little surprise that of the photos remaining of local legend Lola Galli, there are very few of her in which she is not sitting or standing alongside a horse.
As anyone familiar with the famed roper and Tres Pinos native can recall, the two were practically synonymous with each other. In fact, a rare photograph of Lola Galli where she isn’t pictured on a horse is not considered a true portrait of the skilled cowgirl, because, well, that just isn’t Lola.
“She showed horses, she led parades with her big, beautiful smile, and she was just a special, special person,” said Greg Renz, a Tres Pinos resident.
Often known for her big, beautiful smile as much as she was known for her roping and training of horses, though, Galli, who passed away in 1992, will be forever remembered as part of the inaugural class of the California Rodeo Salinas’ Hall of Fame, it was announced earlier this month.
“She did an excellent job of whatever she tried to do,” said Martin Miller, a South County resident who worked with Galli as a teenager. “She had to have worked hard to get that good at roping.”
Previously inducted into the National Reined Cow Horse Association’s Hall of Fame in 2002, Galli will be inducted in the California Rodeo’s Hall of Fame on July 15 at a special luncheon in Salinas, along with other rodeo names such as Jim Rodriguez Sr., Abe Lefton, Jim Rodriguez Jr., Gene Rambo, Jack Roddy, Greg Ward, Arthur Hebbron, Doc Etienne, Ki Silacci and Patricia Adcock Garlinger.
“She and her husband (Frank Galli) are just icons,” Renz said, referring to Lola’s husband, Frank Galli, whom she married in 1929. “When we were kids, we rode with them all the time, and they are so well known in the area.”
Perhaps the most well known story about Galli revolves around entertainer and cowboy Will Rogers, who in 1934 visited the Quien Sabe Ranch in San Benito County where Frank worked as foreman for eight years.
Rogers’ visit followed a performance at the Salinas Rodeo, and he later referred to Galli in his newspaper column, dated May 17, 1934.
Wrote Rogers, “Didn’t mind all the men beating me roping, but when a girl did, it looks like golf will be coming up pretty soon.”
Later, when a reporter asked Galli whether she thought Rogers was a fair roper, she responded, “Yes, he was always spinning a rope like he did on stage. One thing he could never do, though, was make a Figure 8.”
Known as one of the few woman ropers in the state at that time, Galli earned countless awards in the arena, and, as Rogers could perhaps attest to, was considered a fixture in the men’s divisions — not the women’s — due to her high skill.
Competing in team roping alongside Frank, Galli both placed and won at the Cow Palace, the California Rodeo Salinas, the Santa Barbara Fair, Ventura Fair and Elko Fair, among others.
She was also a participant at the very first San Benito County Saddle Horse Show and Rodeo, and was said to have been known for her grand entry — carrying the American flag with a smile. Later, on a trip to Texas and Arizona, Galli observed cutting horses perform, and decided to bring the event to both Bolado Park and the Salinas Rodeo.
“In her prime, you better have your horse and yourself ready to go,” Renz said. “You were gonna get beat.”
At the Cow Palace, for instance, she won the Grandonna Perpetual Trophy in the Working Cow Horse class with her horse “Boots” for three consecutive years, an honor that was retired after she accomplished the feat.
Miller, 60, who was at McCreery Ranch with Galli when he was in high school, can still recall the days when he and his father worked alongside the famous horsewoman, and can still recall what his father said about Galli.
“My dad said if we kept our eyes open and our mouths shut, we could learn something (from Galli),” Miller recalled. “She was always very happy, very upbeat, but a heckuva hand. She knew horses, knew cattle.
“If you just sat back and watched her, you’d notice she did everything for a reason. It probably was kind of second nature to her by then.”
Said to have been practically raised on the saddle — she rode her first pony at the age of 3 and owned her first horse at the age of 12 — Galli competed in her first rodeo in Salinas at the age of 16, where she was awarded first place for best appearing girl and outfit, and took second in a race against some of the fastest cowgirls in the state.
“I can remember Lola on horseback. She had a knack,” said Renz, whose father, Allan Renz, has credited much of his horsemanship skill to the Galli’s. “She had that competitive spirit.”
Born Lola Fruits on July 14, 1907, Galli was the third daughter of Art Fruits, who drove a stagecoach from their home in Tres Pinos to the New Idria mines near Santa Clara. Galli would often tag-a-long on the lengthy trips, but would instead ride the wheel horse of the jerk-line team — not in the stagecoach.
Also helping out at the Tres Pinos Railroad Station, where she would load cattle onto freight cars, as well finding work at Willie Butts’ Ranch and the Ashhurst Ranch, Galli began work at the Quien Sabe Ranch after she was married, and quickly developed her now-famous horsemanship skills.
“I think she was more known for her horsemanship,” said Renz, noting several awards Galli earned. She won the Hackamore class at Bolado Park atop “Peanuts” in the 1940s, a horse that later became a Northern California Champion Hackamore Horse.
“With her horsemanship and her ability to teach and train horses, she could get more out than anyone,” Renz said. “I was lucky enough to have known her and to have rode with her, and I wouldn’t trade that for anything in the world.”
Previously honored in 1973 by the Salinas Rodeo Association for 50 years of service, Galli will be recognized once again in July as part of the California Rodeo’s inaugural class — everything from her skilled roping hands to her unforgettable smile.
“Lola always had that beaming smile,” Renz said. “I remember gathering cattle with her. She was always ready to go and she was always hard to keep up with.”
A biography submitted by the Renz Family contributed to this story.
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An induction luncheon will be held on Thursday, July 15. Ticket prices for the first annual induction are $30 per person and include lunch and drinks during the induction ceremony. The luncheon will take place on the Director’s Patio at the Salinas Sports Complex, located at 1034 N. Main Street in Salinas from 11:30 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. Call 831-775-3102 or 831-775-3185 to reserve your seat.
