Charles "Chuck" Sylvester of LaSalle is synonymous with the National Western Stock Show and Rodeo. Under Sylvester's 25 years of leadership as the general manager, the National Western grew from a nine-day to a 16-day event and increased attendance from 200,000 to more than 630,000. By introducing a Draft Horse Show and bringing in other events such as the Mini Horse Show, Llama Show, Dog Pull and the "Mexican Rodeo Extravaganza," Sylvester was able to increase the urban attendance to 66% from the six-county metro areas.