Former Oakdale rodeo great Leo Camarillo remembered for his dedication to sport
Leo Camarillo left an impact on Oakdale.
Camarillo moved to “The Cowboy Capitol of the World” after growing up in Santa Ynez and became the “Godfather of Team Roping,” said Daniel Green, a 10-time Wrangler National Finals Rodeo header.
“He was the biggest star in Oakdale and meant so much to the city,” Green said. “He revolutionized the way people steer and how to rope a steer.”
Camarillo, a five-time world champion, died on Dec. 30 in Chandler, Arizona, at the age of 76. According to the Oakdale Leader, Camarillo died from complications related to the coronavirus.
“I’ve never seen a man who loved that sport so much,” said his younger brother, Jerold, also a PRCA Hall of Famer, in an interview with Tracy Renck of ProRodeo Sports News. “He dedicated himself to go to rodeos and learn new things. Then, we would come home and try it here, and he loved the whole sport, and he loved all the cowboys.”
Camarillo won the all-around title in 1975 and team roping crowns in 1972, 1973, 1975 and 1983. He was part of the inaugural Professional Rodeo Cowboys Association Hall of Fame Class of 1979.
Green said he competed with Camarillo a couple of times and the legend did “whatever it took for the team to be successful,” including taking care of the horses while Green attended a wedding in between a competition.
“Most people don’t like to go first and last (Friday and Sunday) but he was willing to do anything if you were on his team,” Green said. “He was one of a kind.”
Camarillo also was a six-time National Finals Rodeo Average Champion in Team Roping, including winning titles in 1980 and 1982 with Tee Woolman.
“He was a fierce competitor,” Woolman said in an interview with ProRodeo Sports News. “He worked on his roping every day. When we went to practice, he was working on something new to try and improve to get faster and better. Some days our practices weren’t great, but when you went to the rodeos, there was nobody there who was more prepared than Leo was.”
A documentary called: “Changing the Game: How the Camarillo Family Revolutionized the Sport of Team Roping” was released in 2010 and created by former Oakdale Saddle Club Director Kevin Fox.
The documentary was about the Camarillo brothers and “tells the story of a family, their life possessions piled into a pickup truck and a trailer, arriving in Oakdale and soon turning the city and its vintage sport sideways” according to a 2011 Bee story.
“We showed how to be consistent and rope cattle, rather than wish to rope,” Leo said in an interview with former Bee columnist Ron Agostini in April 2011. “A lot of guys can do it real well, but they can’t tell you how they did it. They say, ‘Watch me.’
“We give them an idea how to catch them every time.”
Besides leaving his mark in the rodeo community, Camarillo also was popular at Ferrarese’s Deli on East F St.
He ate there a lot, and Green said the restaurant created the “Leo Camarillo Sandwich” – a hot sandwich with your choice of roast beef or pastrami, served with melted Monterey Jack cheese, sliced marinated mushrooms, and mayonnaise and mustard on a sourdough roll.
