cutties?

well the whole point of a cuttie is to go faster, not look cool

Well that's up to the rider I guess… The feeling associated with breaking free and drifting around a corner is what I like about cutties… The fact that it's faster is only a bonus if I was in a race… So while it may not be to 'look cool' I have to say I try them because they 'feel cool'.

well the whole point of a cuttie is to go faster, not look cool

Well yeah, but luckily techniques that help you go faster generally look and feel better.

And not everything one does on the trail is for speed, lots of it's for fun, like needless cutties (epically when you spray your trail buddies)

yep i'm getting old i guess. I grew up with the "ride, dont slide" motto as we tried to maintain our trail access in multi use areas. It's like we have already forgotten our past. Those who ignore history are destined to repeat those mistakes I guess.

edit:

And I'm not trying to be an old curmudgeon, obviously the odd cuttie isnt going to ruin a trail, but this "your trail, your rules" attitude is a little unnerving. Unless the trail is on your own private land, it is not your trail. When the general public sees trail damage they associate that damage with the user group, (mtbers, atv'ers etc) regardless of who built the trail. I've built many trails and met hikers on them who don't have a clue when or who (ie what user group) built the trail, but they are aware of trail damage, and that can come back to bite you in the ass like it did in the '90s. One person's gnar is another person's trail erosion.

QFT.

Mountain biking doesn't exist in a vacuum, we're just stewards of the wild, perception equals reality, etc, etc, etc.

Mountain biking can be serious business.