Scope
Private chain or public event?
Small and private
Working recommendation: six to ten people complete all five legs. A larger room gathers only at supper.
BC + AI / Life Sciences / Working concept
Unlisted working brief · no RSVP
The VancouverMacnab
Snow to salt water, then supper.
A proposed one-day route from Cypress to English Bay. Five legs, one small working group, and a shared table at the end. Nothing here is confirmed.
- Format
- Working concept
- Route
- Five legs
- Window
- Spring 2027 proposed
- Decisions
- 0 of 3 made
The route
One descent. Five handoffs.
The working route follows one line from the North Shore to the water, then into the city. Every handoff adds an operator, a safety decision, and a reason to keep the group small.
Ski
Cypress summit to base
Snow fixes the season. The final route and operating window still need mountain review.
Cycle
No SCypress base to the coast
The road leg carries the group from 826 metres to sea level. It is the only leg that breaks the S joke.
Sail
The coast to English Bay
The crossing needs a vessel, crew, route plan, weather rule, and a confirmed handoff point.
Swim
Off the boat to the beach
The shortest leg carries the largest safety question. Cold-water expertise and insurance decide its shape.
Supper
Ashore to one shared table
The challenge stays small. The table is where a larger group could gather, if the program earns a public life.
What survives the retelling
The whole day is one line.
Ski. Cycle. Sail. Swim. Supper.
The idea is legible because the route is physical. Mountain, road, water, shore, table. The format stays memorable only if the logistics stay honest.
Boundary
This is a decision page, not an event listing or a fundraising campaign.
Decision ledger
Three answers unblock the rest.
Each recommendation is on the table. None is a commitment. The program stays unowned and unscheduled until a human says yes beside all three.
Open
Funds
Who receives donations?
Direct to the beneficiary
Working recommendation: use the beneficiary’s own giving system. This requires their written agreement before any campaign exists.
Date
Which spring weekend?
Saturday, April 10, 2027
Working recommendation only. April 3 is the fallback. Neither date is confirmed or ready to promote.
Critical path
The next move is still at the top.
Booking anything now would turn uncertainty into expense. Owner, beneficiary, and date come first.
- Kris
Put three questions in front of Simon
Delivery owner, beneficiary, date. The brief cannot move until each answer has a name beside it.
- Simon
Turn interest into a named working group
The next Life Sciences supper is the checkpoint for converting verbal interest into real availability.
- Simon + Kris
Field trip, then beneficiary conversation
See the work first. Ask second. The organization decides whether the relationship and language are right.
- Delivery owner
Route, marine, venue, and safety checks
The mountain, road, sail, swim, and supper each need an accountable operator and a stop condition.
- Delivery owner
Insurance answer and go or no-go
If the water legs cannot be covered safely, the day changes shape here, not at the shoreline.
- Proposed
Snow to salt water, then supper
A working date, not an announcement.
Release gates
Nothing promoted until these are real.
- 01
Delivery owner
One accountable person can make the operational calls.
- 02
Beneficiary consent
The organization approves its name, role, language, and giving path.
- 03
Safety and liability
The route, cold water, marine handoffs, insurance, and stop rules are written down.
- 04
Exact-copy review
Simon, Kris, and the beneficiary review the words and visuals meant for release.
Guardrails
The field trip happens first.
See the work before building a challenge around it. The beneficiary conversation follows the visit, and public language follows consent.
Relationship
No one-day stunt gets to stand in for long-term support.
Safety
No promotion before cold-water, marine, road, and insurance review.
Consent
No beneficiary name, quote, attendee detail, or room story without permission.
Still open
Questions ranked by what they block.
The first answer creates an owner. The next answers create a program.
| Question | Who answers | What it blocks |
|---|---|---|
| Who owns delivery? | Simon | Every downstream decision |
| Which organization could receive the funds, and do they consent? | Simon + beneficiary | Purpose, language, and giving path |
| Who carries liability? | Delivery owner | Whether the route can happen |
| What is the fundraising target? | Unassigned | What success means |
| What route and road controls are required? | Delivery owner | Cycling and marine handoffs |
| What happens in a bad snow year? | Unassigned | The opening leg and the date |
The name
Macnab, settled.
The 1925 novel is John Macnab, by John Buchan. The Field, which codified the later one-day format, calls it the Macnab Challenge. Vancouver Macnab keeps the spelling that carries the reference.
Simon says McNab aloud and transcripts rendered McNabb. Those remain source variants, not the house spelling.