Peter Lyon
January 26, 2026
Harpreet “Polar Preet” Chandi MBE, the celebrated record-breaking polar adventurer and four-time Guinness World Record holder, is ramping up her training for her most formidable challenge yet – reaching the North Pole completely solo and unsupported, scheduled for March 2026.
And to help get here there, Romanian carmaker Dacia has joined forces with the intrepid adventurer, offering her use of a Bigster SUV. The Dacia Bigster is a C-segment SUV primarily based on an extended version of the third generation Dacia Duster. It shares the same CMF-B platform—the Renault-Nissan-Mitsubishi Alliance’s modular architecture—as the Duster and Jogger, but features a stretched body length and wheelbase, and offers drivers either a 1.2-liter mild-hybrid or a 1.8-liter full hybrid plus optional 4WD.
If successful, Preet will become the first woman in history to complete the demanding journey, an achievement that has eluded generations of explorers in years gone by.
Preet’s previous expeditions saw her conquer the South Pole, skiing over a thousand kilometres across one of the most hostile environments on Earth. But while the South Pole lies on a stable continent of ice and rock, the North Pole is its mirror opposite. It’s a treadmill of frozen water, drifting and shifting beneath her. Every mile gained could be lost to the movement of the ice, and open stretches of freezing sea, known as leads, must be crossed in an immersion suit.
Temperatures will plummet to -50°C, fierce winds will scour the landscape, and the risk of frostbite is constant.
“Historically, the North Pole has been a place where hopes and dreams can be lost,” said Chandi. “To take it on solo and unsupported means being entirely self-reliant: no resupplies, no outside help. It’s a test of physical endurance, yes, but even more so of mindset and resilience.”
Only two men have ever completed a solo, unsupported journey to the North Pole. No woman has yet succeeded.
A former officer in the British Army, Chandi embodies discipline, determination, and leadership, qualities that have defined both her service and her record-breaking expeditions. As a four-time Guinness World Record holder, she has consistently pushed the boundaries of what’s possible in extreme environments.
But it hasn’t always been this way. “I’m not what people expect,” said Chandi. “I wasn’t born into adventure. People say the outdoors is for everyone, and it is, yet when your community hasn’t had that connection, adventure feels like a language that you were never taught, and very few around you speak it.”
She continued: “I just started by taking one step. And then another. I want others, especially young people, to see that you don’t have to come from a certain background to push boundaries.”
With the challenge ahead demanding the toughest possible preparation, Preet has found a kindred spirit in Dacia, a brand built on rugged reliability and a starting point for new outdoor life experiences. Working with Dacia, Preet will use the Bigster as a key part of her training and logistics programme, enabling her to access remote environments and train in conditions that mirror the extremes she will face at the Pole.
In recent weeks she has been dragging large tyres around the streets near her home just outside of Derby to prepare for pulling her sled – a pulk containing over 130kg of her food and equipment – across the moving ice.
Lina Ribeiro, Dacia Brand Director for the UK said: “Adventure isn’t just about far-off places. It’s about finding new experiences wherever you are. At Dacia, we build cars that help make that possible, whether it’s a weekend escape of something bigger like Preet’s incredible challenge.”
CARLIST THOUGHTS
As training intensifies and the countdown to March 2026 begins, Polar Preet is once again setting her sights on the ends of the Earth, and rewriting history in the process.
