Talk to me about drops

[OakLeaf]

Better control when braking and descending - it both lowers your center of gravity and makes it easier to brake and shift without unintentionally steering.

A change of position, to mix up the work by your back, core, shoulders, hands, etc., and to change up your position on the saddle.

Better use of your biceps/triceps - and less on your wrists and hands - as shock absorbers over bumpy terrain.

Plus the aerodynamics, as you mention.

You may want to try some bars with shallower drops. It's a shame to have half your handlebars basically unusable. I use mine MUCH more now that I have bars with shallow drops, although I do miss the deeper tuck for descents. My bike is set up so that I'm not in a super aero position even in the drops; the top of my bars are just about level with my saddle.

Whether or not to cover your brakes depends on the situation. It's a tradeoff between quicker access to the brakes for an emergency stop, versus a better hold on the bars and avoiding the temptation to grab the brakes when swerving would be safer. Do the LCI courses cover this?