From Robert Niles on December 21, 2009 at 3:31 PM
Personally, this used to be my favorite coaster, but I found it had grown a bit rough, when I rode it last summer. Perhaps that roughness explains its position in the bottom half of the draw. Still, its Orlando site ensures that it gets millions of riders each year, and with a relative dearth of coasters in Orlando, it looks good enough relative to the competition to remain the most popular of the floorless coasters.

The only straight-up comparison I have is with Magic Mountain's Scream, and Kraken remains smoother than that coaster, which went rough within a year. And Kraken's setting blows away the parking lot upon which Scream sits.

From Joshua Counsil on December 21, 2009 at 3:56 PM
The first worthy entry in this tournament!

A really great coaster. Can't say I agree with it being rough. I rode it in late August and found it smooth as silk. My only complaint would be its loading staff, who regularly allow the cars to begin their voyage with empty seats.

From James Rao on December 21, 2009 at 4:25 PM
It has been almost three years since I have ridden this wonderful coaster, but it still remains #1 on my coaster top ten list. However, I remember a smooth, flowing ride, with tons of inversions, and some decent decorative touches. Could be my memory is somewhat faulty.

Maybe when I get back to Orlando in 2010 I will get another crack at Kraken!

From 65.12.173.131 on December 21, 2009 at 5:15 PM
Wait, in your last paragraph it seems as though scream was nominee, not kranken. I'm surprised how low it is ranked.

From Robert Niles on December 21, 2009 at 5:43 PM
This is why I make a lousy copy editor for my own stuff. Fixed. Thanks for the catch.

From Allen Boerger on December 21, 2009 at 8:20 PM
I always preferred the Knight Flight coaster at Six Flags Geauga Lake, which I felt to be a much more interesting, tangled up mess when compared to the more staid out-n-back approach that Kraken took. Or maybe I've always held a grudge against Kraken; I lost my pink RAZR on that ride back in 2005.

That said, last week I was at Sea World and rode Kraken for the first time in a couple of years. What a delightful ride. The front row on this coaster is a real treat.

From Anthony Murphy on December 21, 2009 at 9:01 PM
Much better than 15th place I think. One of my favs

From 174.101.118.39 on December 21, 2009 at 11:40 PM
I was always a fan of Batman Knight Flight at Six Flags Worlds of Adventure/Geauga Lake, now known as Dominator at Kings Dominion. I think that Superman Krypton Coaster at Six Flags Fiesta Texas is also better than this one. That being said, it's fairly obvious to me that Kraken gets the nomination because it's in Orlando and more people on this site have ridden it...and many people around here tend to be fixated on anything out of Florida. Kraken the best floorless? That's up for debate, particularly to those who have ridden other floorless coasters. Regardless, Kraken is still a great coaster and absolutely a fair representative of the B&M floorless coaster.

From Derek Potter on December 22, 2009 at 12:22 PM
Anonymous post is mine. That's what I get for deleting my temp files.

From Corbin Barker on December 22, 2009 at 9:21 AM
Wow...if this is 15th, I can't wait to see what the other 14 are.

From Manny Barron on December 22, 2009 at 2:40 PM
15th? This is my number 1 non-themed roller coaster. We might see a monumental "upset" in the first round.

From Robert Niles on December 22, 2009 at 3:11 PM
I'm trying to not reveal too much about what's in and not in the tournament. But I can say that the entire roller coaster bracket is *really* tight. I expect plenty of upsets in this bracket.

From Corbin Barker on December 22, 2009 at 9:30 PM
Oh boy! Oh boy! Oh boy!

This should be fun :)

From David Sutter on December 23, 2009 at 6:21 AM
Ahh nonthemed coster? Sorry all its part of a story line. Kraken was a serpant like creature who gaurded the enterance to Atlantis....Thats it I could go on about it but hate to be accused of long storylines again.