PHOTOS The 2011 Bachelorette is Ashley Hebert

UPDATE 3/15/11 – It’s official! The Bachelorette for 2011 was announced last night during Jimmy Kimmel Live! (I’ll remain silent for now so you can enjoy the post as it was meant to be enjoyed when it was written.)

It’s that time of year when The Bachelor and The Bachelorettte fans begin to obsess over which single lady will be chosen as the next star of The Bachelorette. Reality Steve announced prior to the start of the season that it is Chantal O’Brien who walks away with Brad Womack’s heart at the end of The Bachelor and most everyone assumed that the heart-wrenching story of Emily Maynard, combined with her great looks and charming personality, would earn her the right to have 30 eligible bachelors competing for her heart in the seventh season of The Bachelorette.

But, Reality Steve announced yesterday on his blog that the next Bachelorette is in fact NOT Emily Maynard and he followed that up today with a video announcing who the winner of The Bachelorette sweepstakes for Season 7 is:

I don’t expect any of you to suffer through five excruciating minutes of Steve dancing to Tupac and showing you photos of his dog, so I will cut right to the chase. (My apologies Steve – I greatly appreciate the information you provide, but that video is brutal!)

Your next Bachelorette is…

ASHLEY HEBERT

That’s right, the fun-spirited dental student originally from the small town of Madawaska, Maine will be closely inspecting the molars of hot hunks from all over the country as she hops about the globe looking for love! (I’m guessing this means her dental career will be put on hold indefinitely)

You can catch up on all things Ashley Hebert in our pre-Bachelor profile post on her HERE.

I like Ashley Hebert a lot, and it should be fun watching her juggle a stable of eligible bachelors. What I look forward to the most is her reactions to some of the inevitable ridiculosity of some of the characters ABC invariably digs up for the show (Remember Justin “Rated R” Rego?). I think Ashley is a little too unrestrained to hold back on her reactions and it should make for some entertaining television, especially in those first few episodes!

So what do you think? Will Ashley Hebert make a good Bachelorette? Will you be tuning in to see if she will find true love?

To see more sexy photos of Ashley Hebert from her photo shoot for the 2011 Sports Illustrated Swimsuit Issue (plus a behind-the-scenes video clip!) click HERE and HERE!

Ashley Hebert bikini photos: SI.com

CLICK HERE to see Ashley Hebert before and after her Bachelorette makeover.