Just think of the efficiency that bikers could bring to the workplace, unconstrained in high-tech fibers, warmed to peak performance by a brisk ride to the office, the sweat of exertion staining desks and documents. ... Well, maybe not. But you can still accrue the energizing and planet-sparing benefits of bicycle commuting while reporting for duty fresh-smelling and professionally attired. And next Thursday's Bike to Work festivities are the perfect time to give it a try.

We consulted mountain bike pioneer, cycle-industry titan and fashion icon Gary Fisher, whose eponymous company is at the head of a resurgence in practical urban bicycles. According to Fisher - who checked in from the airport on his way to London to be fitted for a cycle-worthy suit - skeptics who see biking as the enemy of professionalism may actually be looking at things exactly backward. "It's impressive to people when you arrive on a bicycle looking elegant," he says. "Obviously a bike rider is a superior species."

And it doesn't have to be hard. "People say, 'I'm going to get too dirty; I'm going to get too sweaty,' " acknowledges graphic designer Meli Burgueño, whose clientele can have her schlepping from downtown to the Richmond to the Marina and back in one workday. She suggests using straps or clips for pants leg and bringing along a clean undershirt on hot days or dry socks on wet ones to mitigate these worries.

The Bay Area never gets extremely humid, she points out, and "if you take it easy, if you take your time and you organize your ride" to minimize hills and traffic, sweating shouldn't be so much of an issue, though on hotter days she totes a little soap and deodorant. Generally, she says, "whatever you feel comfortable with while walking, you should be able to do with your bike."

And though you can bring along sneakers or flats for riding, most dress shoes work fine. You should watch out for toe clips or spiky BMX pedals that may mar your kicks (cheap, rubber-block pedals are ideal), but Burgueño doesn't hesitate to wear high heels. "It's easier to pedal than to walk in them," she claims.

In the spirit of improvisation, Fisher even suggests trying out an umbrella when things get wet. His favorite dryness solution, though harder to find, is a bike-specific poncho with thumb loops, which offers head-to-toe shelter and plenty of airflow. But the point is that it's easier to adapt to commuting than some assume.

The right bike also helps. One of the best solutions is a European-style machine, with fenders, full chain guards and ladies' models with a step-through frame that won't interfere with skirts - but many of these features can be cobbled onto any street or mountain bike. Not only does the Euro configuration keep clothing clean and untangled, but its upright stance encourages a mellower, less perspiration-intensive style of locomotion.

Quick-change artistry

Which is not to say you can't ride far, quickly or over hill and dale while making it work. It just takes a different kind of planning. Three or four times a week, Anthony Justman commutes 30 miles from the Western Addition to Sony's offices in Foster City, in full Lycra kit and riding, he says, "as fast as I can." It helps that his work site has lockers and showers (for which a nearby gym can provide a decent substitute), allowing him to make the transition from racer to lawyer in 20 minutes or less.

Justman keeps several changes of work clothes at the office, occasionally dropping items off at the local dry cleaners and taking laundry home as needed. Fresh bike gear for the trip home isn't a bad idea, or you can use Justman's trick of drying his clothes in the sun during the day.

It's certainly a different approach than that of Burgueño and Fisher, but with similar results: He rides to work in the manner he enjoys while maintaining an air of respectability. And while he usually gets by with slacks and a crisp dress shirt rather than a suit, he adds, "I like to look dapper."

Wear it well

Avoid black marks on your pants cuffs with a good chain cleaning from the SFBC Bike Doctors' maintenance booth at the Fillmore Farmers' Market, 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. Saturday ( www.sfbike.org/chain#3225). And then dial in your functional finery next Thursday from 6 to 10 p.m. at the San Francisco Bike Coalition's Bike Away from Work Party ( www.sfbike.org/chain#3078) at the Rickshaw stop, with raffles, DJs and a bike-wear fashion show. Also, keep a monocle peeled for the dashing wheelmen (and women) of the San Francisco Tweed Ride ( www.sftweed.com) and their occasional sartorially advanced jaunts through the city. For a full schedule of next Thursday's Bike to Work Day events, go to www.sfbike.org/btwd.

Bike About Town is presented by the San Francisco Bicycle Coalition, a 10,000-member nonprofit dedicated to creating safer streets and more livable communities by promoting the bicycle for everyday transportation. For more biking resources, go to www.sfbike.org.