Someone comes to you a half hour before the race and says I'm from the future and as it currently stands you, having trained hard and with your GF/wife/whatever and friends looking on, will get second place by a half second. He leaves and you look in your bag and find a skinsuit and know it will cut more than that amount of time off.
Looking the part and "growing" the sport through cooler clothes: Second place. Dressing for performance amidst looking dorky: First place. It's not silly, it's a real question.