A Basketball Court Inside a Mountain


Disneyland’s Matterhorn is best known for its bobsled-like roller coaster that twists down the giant peak. But you might not know that deep inside the 147-ft. mountain lurks a basketball court.
How did Disneyland become a place where your hoop dreams could come true? After construction of the Matterhorn was completed in 1959, the roller coaster occupied the bottom two-thirds of the mountain, while the top third remained empty. What to do with the extra space? Disney employees voted to put in a basketball court. Because a regulation court wouldn’t fit inside the mountaintop (sometimes magic can’t trump physics), only one goal was installed.
As for the story about the court being installed to skirt building ordinances, that’s just an urban legend.
This post was excerpted from Adam Raymond's "10 Secrets from the Wonderful World of Disney," in our 10th Anniversary 10 Issue. Subscribe today!