Distributing the load on the base with wood seems like a good plan. May not have to be a lot. (I'm thinking of the time my mast fell down on my boat, not dissimilar )
I build in Lego! Blogs at:
http://L3-G0.blogspot.com (or http://L3-G0.com for short)
http://MCK-Y.blogspot.com and
http://BB-8.blogspot.com
http://L3-G0.blogspot.com (or http://L3-G0.com for short)
http://MCK-Y.blogspot.com and
http://BB-8.blogspot.com