Sigur E. Whitaker

On a trip to her hometown of Indianapolis, Sigur discovered a photograph album of the historic home "Riverdale" which belonged to her great great uncle, James Allison, one of the keystones of the thriving Indianapolis automobile industry in the early 20th century. Her desire to learn more about Allison led to the writing of her first book James Allison, A Biography of the Engine Manufacturer and Indianapolis 500 Cofounder. With a love of history, her next undertaking was to learn more about successful Indiana businessman, Tony Hulman who purchased the Indianapolis Motor Speedway, then on the verge of being torn down, in 1945. Hulman resurrected the Speedway and made it into the "greatest spectacle in racing." The result is the book Tony Hulman, The Man Who Saved the Indianapolis Motor Speedway. Her third book, The Indy Car Wars, the 30-year fight for control of American open-wheel racing, documents the melt-down in Indy car racing which started in 1978. Driven by the desire of team owners for an increase in the payouts at the races, particularly the Indianapolis 500, the management team at the Indianapolis 500 saw it as an attempt to take control of the iconic race. Most people thought that she would become a journalist as she had been the editor of the world's oldest high school daily newspaper. But instead, the world of business was to be in her future. Both her undergraduate degree and a Master's of Business Administration are from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. In addition to writing biographies of people involved in auto racing, she works as a copywriter specializing in the financial and auto racing industries. She is also active in her Rotary Club.