'The Bachelor' star Chris Soules interview: I still question how Whitney Bischoff will adapt in Iowa

The Bachelor star Chris Soules selected Whitney Bischoff as his final bachelorette and proposed to her during Monday night's finale of the ABC reality dating show's nineteenth season.
 
Chris, a 33-year-old farmer from Arlington, IA, chose Whitney, a 29-year-old fertility nurse from Chicago, IL, at the end of his very difficult journey on the show.


Chris was serious about finding a wife from the start, and when runner-up Becca Tilley, a 25-year-old chiropractic assistant from San Diego, CA, continued to voice hesitation about potentially raising a family and moving to Arlington, Chris decided Whitney was the better choice for him.

The next step for Chris is to appear on Dancing with the Stars. So what are his plans now and how will Whitney adapt to all these changes? During a Tuesday conference call with reporters, the happy couple talked to Reality TV World about their engagement.

Reality TV World: On After the Final Rose you both said you're just focused on being engaged in the real world right now. Could you give us more of a timeline of when Whitney will move to Arlington and when you see yourselves getting married -- any certain time of year in mind at least? And how will Chris competing on Dancing with the Stars complicate these logistics?

Whitney Bischoff: Right now, our focus is -- like you said -- being a normal couple, and I think the first step in that is going to be Dancing with the Stars.


And so, I have uprooted some of my things and I am planning to live in LA with Chris during this entire process. I'm his biggest fan and I'll be there every week cheering him on. And I think after that, you know, Arlington is definitely in our future. We'll make that decision at that time.

Reality TV World: Chris, after your family met both girls, your dad Gary said: "I think Whitney's the sure thing, but I think Becca is who Chris wants. I don't know how it will go if he picks her. I think he will take the risky path." He thought you wanted Becca and would end up picking her, so was your dad wrong about what you wanted at the time or did something happen later on to change your mind? 

Chris Soules: At that point, I was just weighing all my options and sort of giving thought and consideration to both women in trying to make a judgment call and being open-minded to all my feelings.

And, you know, part of that is telling them how I felt, being honest with that. And I was confused, so I could only imagine how I came across to my family when I described how I was feeling. I don't think there was any way to really understand, from their perspective, what I was going through.

So, he was just making -- he was telling someone what he was seeing based on what I was telling him. So, it was very clear to me at a certain point that Whitney was the one for me, but there were definitely points and times where I was really confused.


I think after that day, I was taking my time to process things thoroughly, and it wasn't until shortly before that final Rose Ceremony that I was able to have the clarity that Whitney was the one.

Reality TV World: Chris, it became clear by the end of the process that Whitney was madly in love with you, but you had an insecurity from the get-go about Arlington and whether a woman would end up leaving you because of the lifestyle there. When you picked Whitney, did you still have a concern in the back of your mind she might move to Arlington but grow to be unhappy, or worse, resentful after a while?

Chris Soules: I think there's always a question in my mind that once someone who's never been part of that type of lifestyle or lives in an extremely small community in the country, it's something that is eye-opening to anyone who's not done it.

So there's a question even now, you know, how we'll adapt together. You have to go into it being optimistic, but time will tell and we'll do the best we can. If I didn't feel like she could adapt, we wouldn't be at this point. 

Reality TV World: Whitney, how exactly do you plan to adjust to farm life once you get there, how will you keep busy and things like that?


Whitney Bischoff: It's going to be an adjustment but, I mean, I also am planning to stay with my career. I'm going to be able to work from anywhere and work from there, but I'm also not someone who can sit around not doing anything all day. So, I think that, yeah, of course it's going to be a change. But it's something that I think I will definitely adapt to.

Reality TV World: Becca said she thought she was best friends with you, Whitney. However, at the Final 3 Rose Ceremony, right before Kaitlyn Bristowe got eliminated, you told the cameras if Chris wanted Becca, you couldn't possibly be the right one for him because you girls were so different. Could you elaborate on that? Did your friendship change once you became the Final 2?

Whitney Bischoff: I don't think that it was because I thought we were so different. I think, you know, my point at that time was, "If I'm right for him, how can all of these women be right for him?" There's only one person standing in the end, and I did form a strong friendship with Becca.

But again, there's not going to be two people being proposed to at the end. And I think that, as much as on paper, we are similar and we get along and all those sorts of things. But we are just at different stages in our lives. That has nothing to do with how I feel about her personally.

Also during the call, Chris and Whitney talked about what pushed Chris to pick out a ring and eventually give it to Whitney, and what the Bachelor has been doing to prepare for Dancing with the Stars.


Chris, you questioned whether to propose at all last night. What made you finally decide to give away the ring you had selected?

Chris Soules: There were a lot of thoughts that went through my mind throughout that week, and I don't know if it was really a matter of truly questioning whether or not I should or shouldn't. It was just, I was going through a lot of emotions, and it was a very hard final decision to make.

But I knew that, at the end of the week, Whitney was the one for me. After the time we spent together, I mean, our relationship just continued to grow and it confirmed why I thought that I wanted to make this woman my wife.

Whitney, could you tell us a little bit more about the job you have now that you can do from anywhere?

Whitney Bischoff: So, when I got back from filming, I hit the ground running in terms of being right back into work, but not too long after I got home, I was given the opportunity to kind of switch careers a little bit. So, I'm not actually [physically nursing] anymore. I'm able to work kind of more behind-the-scenes, and that's afforded me the possibility to work from anywhere but still stay in a career I'm passionate about.


Chris, why did you initially decide to join Dancing with the Stars and what are you looking forward to most?

Chris Soules: Well, I was approached to be on the show a couple weeks ago and, you know, I gave it some thought and I talked to Whitney about it and with my family about it. And I don't know.

It's just an exciting opportunity to learn a dance, to do something fun that's sort of a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity for a farmer from Arlington, IA, and to be able to put myself out there in a way that I've never been able to.

I think any time you can put yourself out there and do something interesting and fun and meet different people, I think it's only going to make my life better. I'm excited for it. I think it's going to be a ton of fun. I'm having fun already and I'm learning how to dance. That might come in handy with the wedding coming around the corner. I might need to dance at it! (Laughs)

Chris, have you started rehearsing for Dancing with the Stars yet?

Chris Soules: I have. I started last Saturday actually -- or two Saturdays ago -- the week before last Saturday. We've been going as full swing as possible. There's been a couple days here because of my obligations with The Bachelor, but we've been in full swing as much as possible. We're trying to get caught up with all the other contestants.


Please check back with Reality TV World soon for more from Chris and Whitney's interview.






About The Author: Elizabeth Kwiatkowski