Apparatus for flexibly mounting a basketball goal

Abstract

A mechanism for flexibly mounting a basketball goal to a backboard to permit the goal to retractably break away from the backboard if a force exceeding a threshold force is applied to the goal. The mechanism has at least one flexible mount disposed near the lower portion of the mounting plate of the goal which secures the lower portion of the mounting plate in flexible connection to the backboard. This flexible mount permits pivoting of the goal away from the backboard about a point near the lower portion of the mounting plate. The mechanism also has a biased mounting assembly disposed near the upper portion of the mounting plate and securing the upper portion of the mounting plate in biased abutment to the backboard. This biased mounting assembly is connected to the backboard in pivotal engagement to permit the upper portion of the mounting plate to separate from the backboard along a substantially arc-shaped path as the goal pivots about the point near the lower portion of the mounting plate. The biased mounting assembly has a pivotally mounted bolt, a pair of nuts, and a pair of springs, wherein each of the nuts secures at least one of the springs around a pivotally mounted bolt in abutment with the mounting plate. Due to the pivoting of the pivotally mounted bolt, damage to the backboard, goal, and pivotally mounted bolt is minimized or eliminated while maintaining a reliable break away ability.