Chattanooga easily brushed past Beaufort, S.C. to enter the final eight of Outside magazine's Best Town Ever contest.
Outside's new format, which is structured like the March Madness basketball tournament, forces fans to vote once per round to maintain their city's momentum down the final stretch.
Chattanooga is now pitted against Boone, North Carolina, after knocking off Roanoke, Virginia, Releigh-Durham, North Carolina, and Beaufort.
Voting against Boone will continue through May 23.
If Chattanooga triumphs, it will face off against the winner of a vote between Middleburg, Vermont, and Bar Harbor, Maine.
Boone, which like Chattanooga is seen as a destination for outdoor enthusiasts, is ahead of Chattanooga with 51 percent of the vote as of 11 a.m. May 19.