I actually like the hand positions -- I always equated HP 1 to putting my hands on the middle of the bar (which I do when riding more upright and not in drops or hoods, or relaxing like han-grrl mentions), HP 2 was like riding with my hands in the hoods, and HP was more specialized, probably even closer to my mtn bike while hill climbing and my hands are on the bar-ends.

Your experience will certainly vary, esp for specialized situations like Anne mentions but if you ride on road or trail, I find you can align your positions to your normal riding style pretty well.