'The Bachelorette' star Kaitlyn Bristowe: One guy in particular blew me away

The Bachelorette star Kaitlyn Bristowe had an amazing set of dates in her first week as the show's star with some guys making bigger and better impressions than others.


Bristowe first went on a group date in which the guys had to box one another in front of an audience. Ben Zorn's fight with Jared Haibon ended up sending Jared to the hospital for examination.

"I had a blast getting to spend some one-on-one time with some of the guys while we trained... It was great to have some of the guys make time to come over and talk with me while training. Except [Kupah James], who I guess was just really into his training...," Bristowe wrote in her People blog.

"To be honest, I was a little concerned the guys might let their competitiveness outweigh their concern for safety. My stomach dropped once Ben Z. and Daniel Finney began to fight. Ben Z. ain't tiny y'all. And it only seemed to get worse as each match started. As the guys fought harder and harder, I started to think maybe this wasn't such a good idea after all."

Bristowe confessed she was really scared to watch Zorn fight Haibon that night in the ring.


"I was terrified. I think you could actually see my heart beating out of my chest! At least it felt like it. The hit Jared took was my worst nightmare. Although I was excited for Ben Z. to win the belt, I couldn't stop thinking of Jared. Knowing he'd been hurt and couldn't join the afterparty made me so sad. But I had to put my focus on the guys who were there," the Bachelorette wrote.

At the afterparty, Bristowe was apparently "touched" by Zorn's story about his mother dying of cancer when he was 14-years-old. She also loved how Justin Reich opened up about his son.

"To know these guys felt confident enough to share these personal stories with me really touched my heart. To top that off, receiving the note from Jared was really special. The fact that he felt that terrible after the match and thought to stop by and see me meant a lot to me. But above it all, I couldn't help the connection I felt with Ben Z.; I had to give him the rose," Bristowe said.

After her first group date of the season, Bristowe asked Clint Arlis to join her on her first one-on-one date. The couple participated in an underwater photo shoot, so it's safe to say their first kiss was a wet one.

"We vibed so well, and he said all the right things. That Clint, what a charmer. The more time I spent with him, the more I liked him. After such a great date with him, I knew I had to give him the rose. It was one of the best first dates I'd ever had," Bristowe explained.


Then it became time for another group date in which the Bachelorette tested her suitors' standup comedy skills. She admitted they needed a lot of help coming up with jokes because they were "rookies." However, Ian Thomson "impressed" her with some "good one-liners," and Chris "Cupcake" Strandburg made her laugh for different reasons.

"When Cupcake Chris grabbed the mic, I found his nerves to be the cutest thing! He might not have been the funniest, but I think he did great. [Tony Harris], on the other hand -- well -- he pretty much bombed. I think you could hear a pin drop in that room! I think even Tony would admit that comedy's not his thing. He's a lover, not a comedian!" she wrote in the blog.

"But let me tell you, I was blown away by [Joe Bailey]. I wish you guys could have seen some more of his stand-up, but this is a PG show and Joe was heading into NC-17 territory. All in all, I knew I picked the perfect group of guys for this date."

The night after the comedy show, certain guys stood out to Bristowe.

"[Joshua Albers] had me cracking up in our time together, while [JJ Lane] on the other hand stole my heart getting so emotional when he spoke about his daughter. I want nothing more than to start a family, so hearing him speak so adoringly about family meant a lot. It felt right to give him the rose, but I will tell you it was not an easy decision!" Bristowe said.


The night took a drastic turn for the worse when Kupah James decided to confront the Bachelorette about her alleged standoffishness and questionable motives. James suggested Bristowe might've only been keeping him around to make her roster of guys left diverse in order to meet a quota.

"I had no idea there was so much conflict happening amongst the guys that night. I didn't feel any sense of tension until I spoke with Kupah. I can always appreciate when someone is forward and honest, but I can't appreciate aggression. And that's how Kupah's approach felt," Bristowe said.

"Having to defend my initial connection was a weird position to be in. I felt like I had been knocked off my game and it put me in a very confusing headspace. By the way, Kupah, you voted for [Britt Nilsson]; of course the connection isn't AS strong -- you didn't feel it either!"

James sealed his fate by openly sharing the story of what happened with the other guys. Little did he know, Bristowe could hear him and it pushed her over the edge.

"Hearing him turn around and share our conversation with other people wasn't a good feeling. Sending him home was the only thing that made sense at that moment. Hearing him yelling at production in the driveway only confirmed I made the correct choice because I wasn't going to allow other people to be disrespected," Bristowe wrote in her People blog.


So far, Bristowe is proud of the way she's been handling things.

"I like to think I've been pretty vocal about following my heart and not sticking to the rules as the Bachelorette," said the 30-year-old dance instructor from Canada.

"I knew going out to confront Kupah and his behavior was the right thing to do. I've always been one to stand up for what's right, and I'd like to think next week, you'll see what I mean. This will be the first of many times I'll ask you to trust me and my heart, so you stay tuned and hang in there."

The next The Bachelorette episode airs June 1 at 8PM ET/PT on ABC.






About The Author: Elizabeth Kwiatkowski