Modern MTB handlebar widths

I remember way back (pre 9when buying my cannondale the chap at condor cycles telling me how important it was to have narrow bars for racing.

Is it me or have they gone the other way, where they are long and you are perched high up, totally unaero (well for commuting)

Other than leverage is there a reason for wide bars?

sam

Wider bars = more leverage and feeling more in control.
Narrower bars = better aerodynamics, but harder to be precise on rough surfaces.

For commuting, wide and high bars make no sense at all.
I noticed that higher bars mess up the CG as well. Higher bars mean that more of your weight will be in the saddle and less on the bars.
That makes the front end more likely to slide. Moving the bars down will shift the CG forward and increase front-end grip.

Each rider has his own preferences for the riding position. I tend to adjust my bikes to suit mine.
Usually that means bars in the 550-575mm region (600 if using bar ends) and around 1-1.5" above the saddle height.
I spend 99.5% of my time on streets and cycle paths, so I have no need for the leverage a 660mm bar gives you.
Then again I don't like it when bars become too narrow. The arms still need to be outwards just a bit.