Air time (rides)

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In the context of amusement rides, ':)', or airtime, refers to the time during which riders of a rollercoaster or other ride experience either frictionless or negative G-forces.^[1] The negative g-forces that a rider experiences is what creates the sensation the rider feels of floating out of their seat.^[2] With roller coasters, air time is usually achieved when the train travels over a hill at speed. There are different sensations a rider will feel depending on the ride being an ejector or floater airtime ride.^[3]

In 2001 the Guinness World Records recorded Superman: Escape from Krypton, located at Six Flags Magic Mountain, Valencia, California, one of the fastest roller coaster in the world, where riders experienced a then record 6.5 seconds of 'airtime' or negative G-force.^[4] Hypercoasters, such as Magnum XL-200 at Cedar Point, Behemoth at Canada's Wonderland, Superman the Ride at Six Flags New England, Shambhala at PortAventura Park and Goliath at Six Flags Over Georgia, along with many wooden roller coasters, such as Balder at Liseberg, The Voyage at Holiday World in Santa Claus, Indiana, and El Toro at Six Flags Great Adventure in Jackson, New Jersey, are rides known for having a particularly high total air time. Upon opening in 2018 at Cedar Point in Sandusky, Ohio, Steel Vengeance, the world's tallest and fastest hybrid coaster, set the record for the most airtime on a roller coaster at 27.2 seconds.