Originally Posted by
JonathanGennick
Have the hoods always been the normal position? Somehow I'm under the impression that originally the drops were the "normal" position, and that riding in the hoods all the time is a fairly recent development. I can't immediately find any references to corroborate that belief though. It's possible I'm wrong.
Modern racing bikes tend to be more aggressive designs with the rider stretched out longer and lower. Today's hoods may well be where yesterdays drops were aerodynamically.