Stunts are an important and exciting part of cheerleading. Whether they are being used on the sidelines at a school game to wow the crowd, or in a competitive routine to earn points, stunts are an crucial part of cheer.

As a coach, it is your legal duty to keep your athletes in the safest environment possible. Before a team performs any kind of stunt, it is essential that there are well trained spotters readily available. The team should go through a rigorous safety and progression training before they try any type of skills. In order to be great at stunting, a team needs to practice a lot in order to train their muscles. They should also be able to predict the reactions of each other based on the movements and momentum in each type of stunt. Bases, back spots and tops need to understand how to identify the different types of stunts. They should also acknowledge that these skills should always be performed in a safe environment with well thought out progressions in place. It is important to understand safety intimately in order to avoid injuries.

Stunts should be learned from easiest to hardest, and from the lowest to the highest level. This will create an appropriate memory of movement and it will train the athletes to help them understand how stunts physically work. A coach should never allow cheerleaders to rush past a progression and try something that they see another team perform. If you are a high school or college coach, taking the AACCA course, (AACCA.org), can help you get familiar with these progressions and safety initiatives. If you are an all star cheer coach, you should visit the USASF.net and make sure your gym is following the proper protocols.

TYPES OF STUNTS

1. Climbing Stunts

Climbing stunts can be identified when a top girl starts with one foot in the stunt. The top girl will also have one foot on the ground and her hands are placed on the shoulders of the base(s). It’s important that the top girl jumps off the leg that’s on the ground and simultaneously pushes her weight through the base’s shoulders. A top girl should never try to push pressure down on the base(s), but instead lift up through her own shoulders to direct the momentum of the stunt upward. The top girl will then lock her leg and engage her core muscles to create a solid and tight body position.

Examples of climbing stunts are:

• L-stands
• Double base thigh stands
• Single base walk in to hands

2. Weight Transfer Stunts

Weight transfer stunts are identified when there is hand-to-hand contact. The weight of the top girl will transfer from the feet into her hands or arms. The arms of the bases must be locked and close to their heads so that the top girl can transfer her weight into her arms and have something sturdy to push down on when she transfers her weight. When the top girl pushes the weight down through her arms, the bases should be pushing in an upward motion through their arms to resist the weight of the top girl. If the arms of the bases or the top girl bend, the weight cannot be properly distributed and the stunt will not hit efficiently and could cause injury.

Examples of weight transfer stunts are:

• Walk up shoulder stand
• Pick up shoulder stand
• Splits from thighs
• Vault over leap frog to cradle

3. Timing Stunts
Timing stunts are identified when the bases, back spot and top girl all have to have the same timing and lift in their shoulders to make the stunt work. Bases will start out in a weight bearing stance centered around their hips and top girls will hold their own weight in a hang drill on the shoulders of the bases. Having the bases learn how to drive the momentum up at the same time will help the stunt reach the appropriate height. When the top girl learns how to hold her own weight and pull up through her shoulders and the bases understand how to shrug up through their shoulders, timing stunts are more likely to be successful.

Examples of timing stunts:

• Elevator to prep
• Elevator to extension
• Basket toss