Why stunts need the most precise counts
Stunts are where counting keeps athletes safe and makes a routine look clean. A group that loads a count late hits a count late, and a pyramid is only as sharp as its slowest connection. On a sheet, the stunt section is the one place where nearly every count may carry a cue, and where the Who column matters most.
Worked example: one stunt sequence on the counts
Worked example. An elevator to extension with a cradle, starting on the first 1 of a 144 BPM mix. The times are when each count falls, from the grid:
| Cue | 8-count | Count | Seconds from the first 1 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Load in | 1 | 1 | 0 |
| Dip | 1 | 3 | 0.83 |
| Extend (hit) | 1 | 5 | 1.67 |
| Hold, sell it | 1 | 6 | 2.08 |
| Prep the cradle | 2 | 1 | 3.33 |
| Cradle | 2 | 3 | 4.17 |
From load to hit is four counts, 1.67 seconds at this tempo. At 75 percent practice speed it is 2.23 seconds, which is why new stunts are learned slowed down.
Writing a stunt section
- Shade the rows as a stunt section and name it (Opening stunt, Stunt 2) so it can be found on the sheet and on the athletes' cards.
- Write the preparation count: the count where groups must be set and ready, usually the 5 6 7 8 before the load.
- Write each phase on its count: load, dip, hit, the transition, the dismount. Leave the counts between them empty.
- Put the group in Who. If groups are staggered (a ripple), each group gets its own cue on its own count.
- Mark the formation on the 8-count where groups set, and again where they finish if they travel.
Pyramids
A pyramid is several stunts connected, so its sheet shows both the individual groups and the connections. Write one cue for the whole pyramid on the counts where everyone moves together (the hit, the release), and group cues where they do not. A pyramid often spans three to five 8-counts; if the section runs longer, split it into two named sections (Pyramid build, Pyramid transition) so the shading shows the structure.
Formation dots matter most here. The mat drawing on each row is 9 panels by 5 rows, front at the bottom; one dot per stunt group is enough. Copy the formation from the row before and move only the groups that travel.
Common mistakes
- Writing only the hit. The load and the preparation counts are where timing is lost.
- Mixing groups in one cue. "Groups 1 and 3 load, 2 dips" belongs on two counts or in the Who field, not in one box.
- Counting a stunt from the music's big hit when the choreography hits on the count after it.
- Leaving out the dismount. It is part of the count and athletes need to know when it ends.
- Treating the sheet as a safety check. It records timing only; spotting and progressions are coaching decisions.
Build the section in the count sheet editor, then print cards for each group. For using the sheet at practice, read teaching counts to a team.
Sources
Checked on 27 September 2026. Count sheets have no single governing standard; what is written here is common practice in our own words, and every number in a worked example is computed by Cheersheet's own engine when the page is built. Where your gym, choreographer or ruleset does it differently, follow them.
- Cheersheet's own engine and its tests. Every worked number on these pages (tempos, 8-count lengths, how long a routine takes at a practice speed, what the detector found on the test tracks) is computed by the same code the sheet runs, when the page is built.