I frequently ride in the drops or hoods with a forward lean and bent arms and have no problem looking ahead. My bikes are set up aggressively with significant saddle to bar drops. I recall a few years ago that I would become fatigued at times and tended to get a sore neck while trying to look ahead. Now days that is not an issue. I think being able to look ahead with your head raised is trainable. In my case it may be from doing core and resistance work in the off season, riding more miles or just having the need to look ahead and adapting.