Chamber keynote speaker has a passion for cycling

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    Joe Jacobs, manager of marketing and revenue for the Arkansas State Parks Division will be the keynote speaker at the Mount Ida Area Chamber of Commerce Banquet to be held April 14.
    Jacobs will be discussing the huge impact cycling is having on the tourism industry in Arkansas and Montgomery County.
    Since 2005 Jacobs has served as the manager of Marketing and Revenue for the State Parks Division of the Arkansas Department of Parks and Tourism. In this role, he manages the division’s marketing program, including the Division’s $1 million annual advertising program, and oversees the revenue producing operations ($25 million annually) for Arkansas State Parks.
    He coordinates Arkansas State Parks’ promotional efforts in print, broadcast, outdoor, and online media. These include turnkey projects developed and implemented by Division staff plus those done by the department’s advertising agency, CJRW of Little Rock, and Web designer, Aristotle Internet of Little Rock.
    Bicycling has became more than a hobby for Jacobs, he provided technical assistance in the creation of the original Bicycling in Arkansas brochure. He played a key role in the creation of the Arkansas Mountain Bicycling Guide, wrote the Arkansas Bicycle Safety Manual and is currently working with the Tourism Department in creating a new Road Cycling Guide. Jacobs was also the first guest editor for the Arkansas Times publication, Bike Arkansas and has contributed articles for subsequent issues. He represents the department on the Governor’s task force on cycling, a group with the goal of improving the bicycle friendliness of Arkansas through state agency cooperation. A well-rounded outdoor person, Jacobs is also the owner and chief writer for ArkansasOutside.com an online magazine devoted to promoting human powered, outdoor participatory sports in Arkansas.
    Trails are a passion for Jacobs, he serves on the boards of the Central Arkansas Trail Alliance and the Arkansas Mountain Bike Championship Series. He has also been instrumental in the design and creation of mountain bike trails at Pinnacle Mountain State Park, Woolly Hollow State Park and Boyle Park in Little Rock.
    Prior to joining the Arkansas Department of Parks and Tourism, Jacobs was employed in the private sector at several major retail organizations in the U.S.  He holds a Bachelor of Science degree in Business Administration with a concentration in Marketing from the University of South Carolina.
    After living in 15 different states and traveling all over the world in the Navy, Jacobs settled down in Little Rock, Arkansas with his wife, two daughters and son.
    The Mount Ida Area Chamber Banquet will be held Thursday, April 14 at Lake Ouachita Baptist Church.The banquet will begin at 6:30 p.m. and tickets are $20 each, or $160 for a table which seats eight.
    For more information about the Chamber Banquet or the Mount Ida Area Chamber of Commerce go to mtidachamber.com, or check them out on Facebook.

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