Sig Haugdahl was born on January 10, 1891 in Tiller, Norway and migrated to the United States in 1910 making his home with an uncle near Albert Lea, Minnesota. He started his racing career in 1912 on an ice motorbike powered by an Indian motorcycle engine that reached a speed of 70 M.P.H. He soon switched to racing motorcycles but gave those up to race automobiles in 1913.

Sig joined the fledgling International Motor Contest Association (I.M.C.A.) in 1915 racing on the mid-western fair circuit from Canada to Texas in shows promoted by J. Alex Sloan. Sig ran a world record pace of 180 M.P.H. in the Wisconsin Special on the beach at Daytona Beach, Florida, in 1922, thus breaking the previous world record by 24 M.P.H. The record-breaking run was not recognized as a world record however, as Sig was not a member of the American Automobile Association at the time.

In the early 1920s, Sig did most of his racing in California but returned to the mid-west in search of the I.M.C.A. national championship. Sig was crowned the I.M.C.A. national champion six consecutive years 1927-1932. He also built a rocket-powered car and toured the country in 1932 making exhibition runs with it.

In the early 1930s, Sig lived in Florida and continued to race mostly midgets along the eastern coast of the United States. Retiring from driving in 1934, Sig both designed the course and promoted races at the famous beach course at Daytona Beach, Florida.

Sig suffered several strokes before he passed away on February 4, 1970. He is buried in Evergreen Cemetery at Jacksonville, Florida and was inducted into the National Sprint Car Hall of Fame in Knoxville, Iowa in 1994.