The Golden Bachelorette: Joan Vassos & Chock Chapple's Long Distance Relationship Isn't Working (What Their Holiday Break Means For Their Future)

The Golden Bachelorette couple Joan Vassos and Chock Chapple's long-distance relationship is not working for them amid their holiday separation. The Golden Bachelorette season 1 was a smash hit with Bachelor Nation fans, as lead Joan from Gerry Turner's season of The Golden Bachelor stepped into the limelight. Joan had a choice between 24 eligible senior men, but ultimately narrowed it down to four men. Guy Gansert, Pascal Ibgui, Jordan Heller, and Chock all received hometown dates, but only Guy, Pascal, and Chock got to go to Tahiti for final dates with Joan.

Gerry's pilot season of The Golden Bachelor was beloved by fans up until he and his winner, Theresa Nist, announced their divorce just three months after getting married. For Joan, she did get engaged to Chock, but made it clear she was not in a rush to get married, and wanted to take her time and build her and Chock's foundation. However, it's looking more and more like Joan and Chock's foundation is shaky as they enter the real world together in a long-distance relationship.

Joan & Chock's The Golden Bachelorette Journey

Chock Was Joan's Frontrunner The Whole Show

Chock won Joan's first one-on-one date, and the pair went off to Disneyland. They enjoyed their day together immensely as they got deeper with each other and found out they aligned on many things they wanted out of the latter years of their lives. Chock had to leave The Golden Bachelorette abruptly, as his mother passed away, and he had to handle her affairs, but he came back. Chock was Joan's obvious frontrunner throughout the season, as they seemed connected and smitten with each other since their first date.

Chock was able to get to Joan's heart with his persistence and by letting all his walls down enough to make Joan feel like he was all in. Jordan and Pascal both had walls up, which worried Joan and ultimately led to their exits from the show. In Tahiti, Chock and Joan only grew closer, which led Joan to tell her only other remaining option, Guy, that her heart belonged to someone else. In the final rose ceremony, Joan and Chock said I love you to one another, and Joan accepted Chock's proposal (via Bachelor Nation.)

The main criticism of Chock by the other Golden Bachelorette men was that he was possessive over Joan and overtly relentless in his pursuit. During a group bowling date, Chock hogged Joan and wouldn't let her leave his side, which upset the other men on the date. After the show, the incident prompted Pascal to even call Chock a "stalker," in comments he's since apologized for.

How Joan & Chock Said Their Relationship Would Function Post-Show

They Want To Live Together

Joan and Chock were only able to go public with their engagement after the final rose ceremony episode. The Golden Bachelorette season 1 was filmed in July 2024, and aired from September to November. That left Joan and Chock with several months of having to keep the outcome of the season and their relationship a secret. Post-show, Joan and Chock were able to do the interview rounds, and shed light on where their connection was at.

Joan is from Maryland, and Chock is from Kansas, so their relationship is of a long-distance nature. One of the top questions they received was about their plans for future in regard to navigating the distance. But they seem to have things figured out, as they agreed on a solution.

"We know that we’re gonna spend time in Maryland and in Kansas, but then we have this really fun plan because both of us have always dreamed — and we’re finally at this weird stage in life for making this dream come true — that we live in a big city, and, specifically, we’ve always wanted to live in New York. So Chock surprised me and said, 'I want us to go find a place.'"

Joan and Chock relayed that they would both venture to each other's home states in order to spend time with their loved ones and blend each other into their families. Moreover, Joan and Chock's NYC home-buying plans mean that they intend to minimize the impact of their long-distance relationship and endeavor to spend as much time together as possible.

Joan & Chock Spent Two Weeks Apart

What The Distance Means

However, Joan and Chock's plan to mitigate the long-distance isn't actualized well. Joan made an Instagram video with Chock where she revealed that they had just spent two weeks apart over the holidays. Two weeks is a long time for the pair to go without seeing each other, and it speaks to the stickiness that their cross-country union brings. Ideally, Joan and Chock are wanting to spend all their time together, but they have separate lives in separate states. Combining their lives seems like it's not as easy as they imagined, given their holiday season apart.

While absence makes the heart grow fonder, Joan and Chock don't have a lot of time to spare in their later in life connection. Going two weeks without seeing other could be an indication of what's to come if they are being realistic. It's not feasible for either one of them to commute often given that they have such vibrant family lives. The move to New York is positive, but it doesn't detract from the fact that Joan and Chock have distance as a plaguing factor in their relationship.

Joan & Chock's Relationship Won't Work Long Term

Are They A Showmance?

There are rumors circulating that Joan and Chock are only a showmance, and that their connection can't hack it in the real world.

The NYC home is a step in the right direction, but it's only a part-time solution to their larger distance problem. As time goes on, distance will likely be what breaks The Golden Bachelorette couple Joan and Chock up. They can have all the best intentions and outlooks on their futures, but practicality will be their greatest challenge.

The Golden Bachelorette is available to stream on Hulu.