OUTSIDE Magazine, an active and adventure lifestyle brand, is asking its readers to select the Best Town in America: the kind of place with top-notch restaurants, vibrant farmers’ markets, friendly neighborhoods, and unparalleled access to hiking and biking trails. In short, the perfect jumping-off point for adventure. Chattanooga is in the running.
Beginning Monday, OUTSIDE readers will be able to vote for their favorite towns at OUTSIDE Online. The initial bracket is made up of 60 towns selected by OUTSIDE editors and four Wild Card Entries. Wild Card entries were chosen by OUTSIDE readers through a social media-driven voting process on Instagram which used the hashtag #BestTowns2015. Over 6,000 images were posted and the four Wild Card entries have been selected: Roanoke, VA; Port Angeles, WA; New York, NY; Saugatuck, MI.
Over the next six weeks, readers will be able to vote once per round for each of the six rounds of voting on OUTSIDE Online with each round of voting lasting five days. The winners of each round will advance until the final two towns face off in a showdown to determine the Best Town of 2015.
After the close of all six rounds of voting and prior to the Best Towns September issue editorial feature, OUTSIDE will profile various towns within the final bracket. This year’s contest was made possible through a new partnership with lifestyle apparel company Toad&Co.
OUTSIDE will feature the final 16 towns in its September issue.
The 64 towns are grouped by region in seeded brackets.
EAST
Annapolis, MD; Bar Harbor, ME; Brattleboro, VT; Cold Spring, NY; East Stoudsburg, PA; Elmira, NY; Lake Placid, NY; Lebanon, NH; Middlebury, VT; New Haven, CT; Northampton, MA; Pittsburgh, PA; Portsmouth, NH; Providence, RI; Red Bank, NJ; New York, NY
SOUTH
Alpine, TX; Athens, GA; Beaufort, SC; Bentonville, AR; Birmingham, AL; Boone, NC; Charlottesville, VA; Chattanooga, TN; Fayetteville, WV; Houston, TX; Ocala, FL; Oxford, MS; Raleigh-Durham, NC; Savannah, GA; Tampa, FL; Roanoke, VA
MIDWEST
Bellaire, MI; Berea, KY; Columbus, OH; Detroit, MI; Eau Claire, WI; Ely, MN; Evanston, IL; Indianapolis, IN; Iowa City, IA; Kansas City, MO; Milwaukee, WI; Rapid City, SD; Rochester, MN; Spearfish, SD; Yellow Springs, OH; Saugatuck, MI
WEST
Ashland, OR; Bainbridge Island, WA; Flagstaff, AZ; FT. Bragg, CA; Glenwood Springs, CO; Hilo, HI; Juneau, AK; Las Vegas, NV; Ogden, UT; Pagosa Springs, CO; Santa Barbara, CA; Santa Fe, NM; Sheridan, WY; Victor, ID; Whitefish, MT; Port Angeles, WA
View the Best Towns 2014 bracket here: http://www.outsideonline.com/1972941/best-towns-2015. For more information, contact Suzanne Byowitz at The Rosen Group, 646 695-7049 or suzanne@rosengrouppr.com.