Originally Posted by
HTupolev
Yes they did. The technology to make lightweight, stiff rim brakes that can handle large (up to around 2") tires has been available since at least the 1930s. The gravel cyclists of that era put a ton of emphasis on figuring it out. Properly-set-up old-school wide-profile cantis work quite well, as do the dual-pivot centerpull calipers of the 1950s. The leverage isn't as high as on modern sidepulls, but that's not a critical issue in most reasonable setups of the era (since people weren't trying to manage technical terrain on the hoods), nor would it have been technologically difficult to solve (i.e. make the arms slightly longer).
Fair point. I have had a pair of Tektro long-reach calipers on my steel bike since 2014, that comfortably fit 35mm tires. But the typical Dura Ace/Ultegra groupset did not allow for larger tires, nor did the typical race-oriented bike.
I am sure if the science behind rolling resistance had been as evolved 15-20 years ago, we would have seen this. I know HED has been talking about the benefit of wider wheels providing more stability for quite a few years, but the first i have started hearing about wider/softer = faster has been recently.