Bases do the lifting, holding and catching in every stunt. A good base makes a stunt look easy and makes the flyer feel safe. This guide covers what a base does in the gym: stance, where the power comes from, timing, holding the stunt, catching, and the safety rules that apply to you. For strength work you can do away from practice, see our companion guide to base training at home.

Learn and practice every stunt with a qualified coach, on proper mats, with trained spotters. Nothing in this guide replaces your coach’s teaching progression.

What Is a Base?

USA Cheer’s college rules define a base as a person in direct contact with the performing surface who is supporting another person’s weight. The US All Star Federation (USASF) glossary describes the base the same way: the person who holds, lifts or tosses a top person, with feet on the floor. In a typical two-legged stunt group there are two bases (often called the main base and side base), a backspot and the flyer.

A base is not the same as a spotter. Under USA Cheer’s rules, a spotter’s main job is to protect the top person’s head, neck and shoulders, and a required spotter can’t be the one providing primary support.

Stance and Posture

Varsity’s stunting basics start with the feet. Bases should begin with their feet about shoulder-width apart. In a basket toss, Varsity adds that bases should keep their backs upright so they throw with their shoulders and legs.

• Feet: about shoulder-width apart, weight balanced, close enough to your co-base that you can work together under the flyer.
• Back: upright. If your back rounds to reach the flyer, you’re out of position.
• Arms: Varsity says arms should start at a comfortable level, close to the navel, and resist the flyer’s weight rather than curl it up.

Power Comes From Your Legs

This is the most important basing skill. Varsity describes the power for a stunt as starting in the legs, carrying through the shoulders and finishing in the arms, which lock out at the top. If a stunt isn’t reaching the top, there’s a break somewhere in that chain. A bicep-curl motion is one sign of that break.

• Dip with your legs together with the rest of the group.
• Drive up through your legs first, then shoulders, then arms.
• Lock your arms at the top. If the bases are different heights, Varsity’s advice is to make up the difference by bending at the legs, not the arms.
• Once the stunt is up, stay as still as you can. Small steps and shuffles make it harder for everyone.

Grips and Roles in the Group

Grips vary by stunt and by coach, so learn the exact grip your coach teaches. As one example, Varsity’s guide to the ground-up liberty describes a “main” base, usually on the side of the flyer’s standing leg, holding the foot like an elevator grip. The “support” base places the back hand in the center of the foot and the front hand on the main base’s wrist.

Whatever grip you use, the goal is the same: a secure hold on the flyer’s foot that lets both bases lift evenly and stay underneath the stunt.

Timing and Communication

Stunts hit when everyone moves on the same count. In Varsity’s ground-up liberty, the flyer counts “one, two, down, up,” and everyone dips on “down.” Varsity also notes that bases should hesitate a split second to let the flyer get her hips above her knee. Lifting too early slows the stunt down.

Your group’s calls may be different, but agree on them before you stunt:

• Who counts: the flyer, the backspot or a coach. Pick one voice.
• The ready call: nobody loads until everyone has said they’re ready.
• The cradle call: one person calls the dismount so every base catches together.
• The “down” call: anyone who feels the stunt going should say so loudly, so the group can bring the flyer down safely.

Holding the Stunt

Varsity says bases that stress safety hold the stunt directly over their noses and look up at the stunt at all times. In practice that means:

• Eyes on the flyer for the whole stunt, including the dismount.
• Stay underneath the flyer. Don’t let your arms drift forward or out to the side.
• Keep your arms locked and your core tight so the platform doesn’t shake.
• Trust your backspot. Varsity calls the backspot “the glue” of the stunt; they watch the flyer’s hips to judge whether the stunt is centered.

Catching and Cradles

Bases catch the flyer at the end of most stunts. USA Cheer defines a cradle as a dismount where the top person lands face-up in a semi-piked position. USA Cheer’s college rules also say that dismounts to the floor from shoulder level or higher need help from a base or spotter, and that thorough training in spotting should be mandatory for all squads.

Your coach will teach cradle and catching technique step by step. The basics bases work on include:

• Keeping your eyes on the flyer and your arms up as the flyer comes down. Varsity’s basket toss guide tells bases to keep their arms up for the cradle so they catch as high as possible.
• Catching together on the called count. The USASF glossary describes a cradle catch with the bases’ arms wrapped under the flyer’s back and legs.
• Absorbing the catch with your legs rather than locking your knees.
• Practicing cradles and falls from lower stunts, with spotters, before moving to higher ones.

If a flyer hits their head or anyone is hurt during a fall, stop. The American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) says athletes with concussions or other serious injuries shouldn’t return to cheer until a medical professional has cleared them.

Safety Rules That Apply to Bases

USA Cheer’s college rules include several points every base should know (high school and all-star rules differ in detail, so check the rules that apply to your team):

• Partner stunts, pyramids and tosses should be approved by the coach before they’re done.
• Skills that haven’t been mastered should be done only in supervised practice.
• Technical skills shouldn’t be done on concrete, asphalt, wet or uneven surfaces.
• Many one-arm stunts need a spotter. The college rules list examples such as heel stretch, arabesque, scorpion and bow and arrow when the base uses only one arm.
• Fingernails must be kept short, jewelry isn’t allowed, and soft-soled athletic shoes are required.

The AAP’s 2024 cheer safety recommendations add that coaches should be trained in safety techniques, especially spotting, and that skills should match athletes’ age and skill level.

Strength for Bases

USA Cheer’s college rules say every cheer squad should have a comprehensive conditioning and strength program. Bases especially need leg strength, upper-body pushing strength, a stable core and good grip. Our base training at home guide covers exercises and safe progression, and our strength training guide covers the whole team.

Quick Checklist for Bases

• Feet about shoulder-width apart, back upright, arms near your navel to start.
• Drive from your legs, then shoulders, then arms. Lock out at the top.
• Agree on counts and calls before every stunt.
• Eyes on the flyer, stunt over your nose, stay underneath.
• Arms up and legs ready for every cradle.
• Short nails, no jewelry, proper shoes, and a coach and spotters present.

Want to understand the other side of the stunt? Read our guides on flyer technique and hitting stunts consistently.

Sources: USA Cheer, 2026-27 College Cheer Rules; USASF, Cheer Rules and Glossary; Varsity, Stunting Basics, Elite Stunts and Basket Toss; American Academy of Pediatrics, Cheerleading Safety (HealthyChildren.org). Last checked October 1, 2026.