Ashley Hebert got a head start Monday night in the romantic race to win the heart of TV’s “Bachelor.”
Hebert, a dental student from Madawaska, was picked by Brad Womack for his first one-on-one date on the new season of ABC’s hit reality show.
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For the date, Womack drove Hebert to a dark, deserted spot and then asked her to flip a switch. The switch lit up a carnival, which the couple got to enjoy by themselves.
In the middle of the date, the couple had the show’s first romantic kiss of the season, embracing on the carnival midway. They kissed again high above the ground while riding the Ferris wheel.
“It feels amazing, I never thought I’d fall this quick,” Hebert, 26, said to the camera after the first kiss. “This is the best date I’ve been on in years.”
After the date, Womack offered Hebert a rose, meaning that she will make it to the next episode.
The season started Jan. 3 with 30 women vying for Womack. Ten were eliminated at the end of the first episode. Three more were eliminated Monday night, leaving Hebert and 16 others competing to win Womack’s heart between now and the season finale on March 14. The show airs Mondays at 8 p.m.
During their date, Womack and Hebert connected over the fact that neither saw their father much, if at all, during their childhood. Hebert told Womack that was part of the reason she always wanted to be able to “stand on my own two feet” and feels it’s important to “always be prepared for the worst.”
After the soul searching, Womack said to the camera: “She enabled me to let down my walls. I really like this girl.”
Hebert, who is living in Philadelphia and studying dentistry at the University of Pennsylvania, grew up in Madawaska and went to the University of Maine, where she was captain of the dance team. She also works as dance instructor.
The rest of Monday’s two-hour “Bachelor” episode showed women trying to get Womack’s attention, and taking verbal shots at each other in the process. Few made as good an impression as Hebert did.
Womack caused a controversy in 2007, when he was on the show and failed to choose a contestant to propose to.
After his date with Hebert, he looked into the camera and said: “It’s been a long time since I met a girl I can really be myself with.”
Staff Writer Ray Routhier can be contacted at 791-6454 or at: rrouthier@pressherald.com
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