Biker Rally Executive Arrested
by September 30, 2013 12:00 am 92 views
You may have seen the news on TV. Joe Giles, executive director of Bikes, Blues & BBQ, was arrested and charged with driving while intoxicated on Sept. 15, just a few days before the annual biker rally began.
According to reports, Giles was pulled over in his black Chevy Suburban early on the morning in question because he didn’t have his lights on. A Washington County deputy said he smelled “intoxicants” on Giles’ breath and noticed a cooler and beer in the vehicle. Giles failed the subsequent field sobriety test, which was filmed by the squad car’s dash cam, and was arrested.
According to reports, Giles soon informed his board of the arrest and offered to resign, an offer his board of directors declined. For now, at least. Giles is due in Fayetteville District Court in October, and Whispers is sure a reporter or two will be sitting in the courtroom when his fate is decided.
Giles seems like a good guy with the requisite energy and attitude to helm an event the magnitude of BBB. He rides a Harley. He has his own band, Joe Giles and the Homewreckers. If there’s a person who seems custom fit for the BBB gig, it’s Giles.
But he is also 62, and his judgment should probably be better than that of a college sophomore.
Like it or not, BBB has grown to such proportions that in 2006, the Center for Business and Economic Research at the University of Arkansas released a report on the event’s economic impact. The university estimated the rally brought in anywhere from $34.7 to $52.1 million. Those are big, and important, numbers for the region’s financials.
The question of if the rally has grown or declined since 2006 is irrelevant, and so is the question of exactly how many bikers attend.
From what Whispers saw during the 2013 version, it isn’t going anywhere anytime soon. You have to think Giles has had something to do with the rally’s success.
It’s unclear if Giles will manage to hold on to his job. But what we are pretty sure of is next time he’s in a similar situation, Giles will call a cab.