[Lowcountry idn]

Great article, thanks for posting.

I would guess the reason skinnier tires are not that popular is right in the article under the Benefits of a wide tire:

The smoother and wider a tire is, the better it will perform in sand, as the width creates flotation and the smoother tread displaces less sand under (horizontal) acceleration (shearing force). The same influences apply with snow and mud. If the snow and mud are deeper than 110% of the vehicles minimum ground clearance, than it is better to run a wide tire, aired down and have the vehicle “float” on the surface.

So, wide tires are better in sand, deep snow and deep mud, which is where the vast majority of people who actually care about tires drive.

So while it may not be what you need, tires are produced in volume for the masses. The number of people that can benefit from skinny tires, and are knowledgeable to know that, are probably a fairly small number. So unfortunately our skinny options are limited.