Do you remember when the president best known for biking in Delaware was Trump not Biden?

Joe Biden is probably better known as the presidential bike guy. The commander in chief is frequently photographed riding, and once falling off, his bike near Rehoboth Beach.

But did you know former President Donald Trump also was known, albeit briefly, for biking in Delaware?

While Trump hasn't been photographed on or taking a tumble from two wheels in the First State, he did sponsor a cycling race here that was supposed to become America's answer to the Tour de France.

Thirty-four years ago this month, Wilmington was the "host city" for the Tour de Trump, a 1,107-mile, 10-day cycling event in six states named for and sponsored by Trump.

The May 3 to 13, 1990, race with 13 stages brought fleeting hoopla to the city. It featured two-time Tour de France winner Greg LeMond, the then-greatest cyclist in the world, five Olympic gold medalists and national media coverage.

Trump in 1989 began the lucrative cycling event with a $250,000 purse as a marketing tool and a substitute for the defunct Coors International Bicycle Classic. The inaugural race, considered a success, kicked off in Albany, New York.

The following year, Trump wanted Delaware to participate in an expanded race to help entice visitors to the three Atlantic City casinos he once ran. Trump organizers said Delaware was, demographically and logistically, a perfect spot.

The late Wilmington City Councilman Ted Blunt told The News Journal in 1990 that he also played a part in enticing Trump to Delaware for the second annual event.

Blunt played basketball at Winston-Salem College in New Carolina and had a friendship with NBC commentator Billy Packer, who played guard for Wake Forest University. While attending an event together at the University of Delaware, Packer, an inaugural Tour de Trump organizer, told Blunt that Delaware could be a good place for part of the cycling event because of its scenic routes.

Blunt agreed and helped set up meetings with state, Wilmington and New Castle County officials.

On Feb. 13, 1990, around 11:15 a.m. Trump's helicopter, named "Ivana," a nod to his estranged first wife whom he would divorce 10 months later, landed in Brandywine Park at 18th and Washington streets, near the Vietnam Veterans Memorial.

Trump hopped out of the helicopter and into a waiting limousine. He took a tour of the race course with Wilmington commerce director J. Brian Murphy, who told The News Journal in 1990 that Trump was "a very down-to-earth guy" and seemed most interested in talking about a Mike Tyson boxing match.

Trump was driven to the Hotel du Pont, where he announced that Delaware would be where the Tour de Trump would begin.

"Do I know how to draw a crowd or what?” Trump said to an organizer after viewing the Hotel du Pont's jam-packed Gold Ballroom and a slew of TV cameras and journalists, according to a 2016 story in Politico.

Being rich is nothing new in Delaware, home to the enormously wealthy du Pont family. But being rich and famous and flaunting your fortune in Delaware is something to see.

Trump's appearance was considered the hottest ticket in town. The crowd that day included then-Gov. Mike Castle, Wilmington Mayor Dan Frawley, and then-U.S. Rep. Tom Carper — all made speeches — along with other Delaware politicians, movers and shakers, and heavy hitters.

Who wasn't in attendance? Delaware's Democratic Sen. Joe Biden.

Three decades later, Biden would become locked in a tight race for the presidency against Trump in 2020 and again in 2024. (Republican Sen. Bill Roth, who died in 2003, also skipped the Trump media circus.)

"With last year's Tour de Trump, everyone kept saying, 'What is it, where is it and what's it going to be?'" Trump said as he hyped the crowd.

"And it turned out to be a tremendous success. This year, every city on the East Coast was fighting to be the host city. And not only is Wilmington a city (on the Tour), but the starting city.

"It's amazing what's happened in Wilmington," Trump said, adding, "It's a great honor to be here."

Trump mentioned "a five-year commitment" to the city, about the length of his marriage to model Marla Maples.

The commitment to Delaware would last only two days.

Trump kept a tight-lipped smile in place at the Hotel du Pont and mugged for photographers when Castle gave him a promotional Tour de Trump T-shirt, according to News Journal archives.

Trump, never known as a vegetable lover, picked at a salad he was served but left well before a luncheon was underway.

His entire visit lasted 90 minutes.

On the way out, Trump ignored most media questions about his rocky personal life (he was having an affair with future wife Maples) and reacted only when a photographer asked, "When are you going to rename your helicopter?"

The future 45th president of the United States turned to the photographer and burst out laughing before departing.

On a cloudy, drizzly Thursday, May 3, the "prologue" time trials for the 1990 Tour de Trump started and finished in Rodney Square. It drew anywhere from 15,000 to 30,000 spectators, depending on who was asked that day.

The 3.1-mile route loop traveled along King Street and included a cobblestone climb up Monkey Hill in Brandywine Park. Some spectators admitted they came to Monkey Hill just to see some possible crashes on the slippery rocks. (Only one cyclist rose to the challenge.)

Despite the gloomy skies, the atmosphere was carnival-like with open tents and cafe tables on Market Street, people hawking T-shirts and refreshments, and a huge screen that broadcast the race and DuPont Co. commercials.

The 28-year-old LeMond, Sports Illustrated's "1989 Sportsman of the Year," was the biggest draw and was considered a favorite to take home the cycling crown.

Trump, however, was a no-show.

About a week earlier, news broke that Trump was considering selling or refinancing every asset he had. A Forbes magazine article said that due to a soft real estate market and problems at the Atlantic City casinos, there was speculation that he was having cash problems. Trump vehemently denied it.

Trump also didn't show up for the first of 13 stages of the Tour de Trump that officially began on Friday morning, May 4, 1990, in Wilmington. Professional cyclist Raúl Alcalá, 26, of Monterrey, Mexico, wore the leader's neon pink jersey.

The pack left Wilmington, traveled down Route 52, and eventually biked through downtown Newark.

Fans, some hoisting Bloody Marys with celery stalks, watched as the 133 cyclists whizzed down Newark's Main Street. They sprinted past Klondike Kate's and the Deer Park Tavern "like a swarm of angry bees," News Journal sports columnist Jack Chevalier wrote.

Several hundred fans stood in the parking lot of the Newark Country Club as the cyclists breezed through the town and rode to Cecil County, Maryland.

Cyclists eventually made their way 98 miles to Baltimore. Other stops in the 10-day race included Fredericksburg, Richmond, Charlottesville and Winchester, Virginia; Harrisburg, the Lehigh Valley, and Stroudsburg, Pennsylvania; New York City, Catskill and Albany, New York.

Trump pulled another disappearing act and was not around when the 1990 race concluded in Boston.

He didn't appear to give the $50,000 check to winner Alcalá, who finished what he started in Wilmington. Now retired, Alcalá is considered the most successful Mexican cyclist.

LeMond, who in April 1987 nearly died after being accidentally shot by his brother-in-law while turkey hunting and later had an emergency appendectomy, had a disappointing run and ended up placing 78th. He would say he was fighting an upset stomach early on and blamed his poor performance on a lack of training due to a busy schedule.

The excitement of the race was short-lived and the future president's involvement was over after May 1990.

Trump ended his sponsorship when he was mired in debt from his casinos; payments to soon-to-be ex-wife Ivana; and operating expenses from luxury assets such as a helicopter, yacht and airplane. The race was estimated to have cost him about $2 million yearly, or $4.7 million today.

Trump Plaza Hotel & Casino of Atlantic City spokesman Dave Coskey said in November 1990 that the race gave "great exposure to the Trump name, but it didn't bring any new business to the casino." Interestingly enough, although the 1989 race ended in Atlantic City, the 1990 event didn't go anywhere near the resort.

Trump would return to Delaware several times during his presidency when he traveled to Dover Air Force Base to pay respect to the dignified transfer of the remains of service members killed in Afghanistan.

The Wilmington-based DuPont Co. took over sponsorship of the bike race in 1991 and renamed it the Tour DuPont.

The 11-stage, 1,100-mile race ran for five years. LeMond won the Tour DuPont in 1992, the last major win of his career.

In 1993, a young rising cycling star named Lance Armstrong finished second. He would capture the crown in 1995 and again in 1996.

DuPont ended its involvement after the 1996 cycling event. Just four months earlier, du Pont family heir John E. du Pont, whose father had owned the historical Bellevue Hall mansion in Bellevue State Park that was sold to the state, murdered Olympic wrestler Dave Schultz at his Newtown Square, Pennsylvania, estate.

Although it had only a brief moment in the spotlight, the Tour de Trump helped raise the sport’s profile in the United States, the president of USA Cycling said in a 2016 story in Politico.

The city still hosts a cycling event.

The Wilmington Grand Prix, considered one of the premier criterium-style bike races in the U.S., returns for its 16th edition from May 17-19. It is an early-season stop on USA Cycling’s National Racing Calendar, which is made up of the top bike races in America, according to its website. It's free and open to the public.

It includes professional racing through Wilmington’s Brandywine Park, as well as men’s and women’s professional and amateur racing.

Last year’s Gran Fondo, a mass participation of cyclists, attracted participants from 18 states, including Texas, Colorado and Florida, and five countries, including Australia, Great Britain, Mexico and Canada.

Still, some aspects of the Tour de Trump live on.

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The time trial taking place on Friday, May 17 is held at Monkey Hill. It was inspired by the Tour DuPont and, before that, the Tour de Trump.

"Do you remember?" is an occasional News Journal/Delaware Online feature that looks at the history behind long-gone Delaware buildings, objects, businesses, and places.  

If you want to read more stories from Patricia Talorico, visit   delawareonline.com/staff/2646617001/patricia-talorico You can find her on Instagram, X and Facebook. Email  ptalorico@delawareonline.com. Sign up for her  Delaware Eats newsletter.

This article originally appeared on Delaware News Journal: The president first known for biking in Delaware was Trump, not Biden