Anime Detour

Anime Detour
above	Anime Detour
aboveclass	navbox-title
captionstyle	font-size: smaller;
label1	Status
data1	Active
label2	Genre
label3	Venue
data3	Sheraton Bloomington Hotel, Minneapolis South "Sheraton South"
label4	Location
data4	Bloomington, Minnesota
label5	Country
data5	United States
label6	First held
data6	2004
label7	Last held
label8	Organizer
label9	Filing status
label10	Attendance
data10	3,850 in 2009
label11	Official website
data11	http://www.animedetour.com
Anime Detour
italic title	¬

Anime Detour is an anime convention held at Bloomington, Minnesota in the United States. Anime Detour typically takes place near the end of March or the beginning of April.

Programming

Anime Detour's programming is common with those of other anime conventions. Typical events including anime music video contests, anime screenings, video games, video game competitions, cosplay, dealers' room, guest singings, guest panels, stand up comedy, and dances.

An added bonus, Greg Ayres will often DJ one or both of the friday and saturday night dances when he is in attendance.

History

Anime Detour was first held in 2004, after a 2-year period of research and planning (established June 2002), by the non-profit organization Anime Twin Cites, Inc. Initial attendance was only expected to be in the range of 400~600 participants. The staff was somewhat surprised and overwhelmed at the positive response and resulting 1,200 person attendance. Since then, Anime Detour has imposed a yearly attendance cap in order to maintain the feel of a "small" anime convention and also to control "the explosive growth of many anime conventions" with controlled growth, safety, and training being key points of annual convention planning. While the staff and organizers of Anime Detour are not opposed to it becoming one of the premiere midwest anime conventions, rivalling Anime Iowa or Anime Central, they prefer to do so in small steps, hopefully avoiding most of the growing pains experienced by conventions that undergo exponential attendance growth.

Event History

Dates	Location	Atten.	Guests
March 26–28, 2004	Minneapolis Airport Marriott Bloomington, Minnesota	1,200	Dr. Marc Hairston, Kyle Hebert, Kristofer "Phade" McCormic, Monica Rial, and Carrie Savage.
March 11–13, 2005	Thunderbird Convention Center (Ramada Inn) Bloomington, Minnesota	1,600	Greg Ayres, Dr. Marc Hairston, Kyle Hebert, Jonathan Klein, Kristofer "Phade" McCormic, Monica Rial, Carrie Savage, and Travis Willingham.
March 24–26, 2006	Thunderbird Convention Center (Ramada Inn) Bloomington, Minnesota	2,464	Greg Ayres, Emily DeJesus, Robert DeJesus, Tiffany Grant, Matt Greenfield, Kyle Hebert, Jonathan Klein, Rebecca Marjesdatter, Kristofer "Phade" McCormic, Monica Rial, Carrie Savage, and Joan Vinge.
March 23–25, 2007	Ramada Mall of America Bloomington, Minnesota	3,000	Chris Ayres, Greg Ayres, Clarine Harp, Kyle Hebert, Barb Jacobs, Steve Jones, Brittney Karbowski, Michael McConnohie, Kristofer "Phade" McCormic, Carrie Savage, and Melodee M. Spevack.
April 4-6, 2008	Ramada Mall of America Bloomington, Minnesota	3,000	Chris Ayres, Greg Ayres, Michael Coleman, Clarine Harp, Kyle Hebert, Jamie Marchi, Kristofer "Phade" McCormic, and Carrie Savage.
April 3–5, 2009	Crowne Plaza Hotel St. Paul-Riverfront St. Paul, Minnesota	3,850	Pete Abrams, Christopher Ayres, Greg Ayres, Clarine Harp, Kyle Hebert, Kristofer McCormic, Randal Milholland, Carrie Savage, Richard Townsend, and Shannon Townsend.
April 23–25, 2010	Sheraton Bloomington Hotel Bloomington, Minnesota		Greg Ayres, Chris Ayres, Carrie Savage, Clarine Harp, Kyle Hebert, Kristofer "Phade" McCormic, Jan Scott-Frazier, Shinichi "Nabeshin" Watanabe.

External links

• Anime Detour official website