Earlier this month 18-year-old Ellis Butler-Barker made the second ascent of Brian at Anstey's Cove, making him the joint youngest Brit to have climbed 8c+ (Malcolm Smith climbed Hubble 8c+ at Raven Tor when he was 18). In this interview the teenager talks about tactical training to push your grade and climbing kids changing the face of the sport.

Ken Palmer first climbed the route Brian at Anstey's Cove in August 2003 and gave it 8c. It was quickly upgraded to 8c+ after several strong climbers had tried it with no success. Then the route had to wait nearly 12 years for a repeat ascent...

WATCH Ellis climb Brian on BMC TV

EBB: Brian was the first 'hard' route I'd ever seen in person. I visited Anstey's Cove for the first time in 2012 and looked up at the route. It seemed like the impossible line - one I'd never be able to do - which kind of made me want to try it even more.

I first tried all the moves on Brian last May, after I'd done all the other routes on the wall. It seemed ambitious at first. Then I realised it might go if I put some time into it... 

In February this year I climbed 16 8as and 8bs in 6 days in El Chorro. I didn't really have any expectations for that trip, I was feeling pretty unfit so just wanted to do some longer routes to build some fitness. It was great fun trying loads of different routes but also very hard work. After that I was psyched to get back on Brian and have a serious project for the first time.

For the first time ever, I did some tactical training for Brian. I'd played around on a campus board a while ago but never had any structure to the sessions. I watched a Sean McColl campus video and followed his plan for a few sessions and also tried finger boarding for the first time. After only a couple of sessions I felt so much stronger when I went out on the rock.

In general I try to eat well but when trying Brian, I felt that I needed to be even more strict with my diet. I ate a lot of spinach!

Then one day, after a quick warm up I had 20 minutes rest, pulled onto Brian, and it all felt perfect. I felt much stronger on the crux moves, much more relaxed and far more confident. After the rest halfway, I told myself to try as hard as I could, but stay relaxed at the same time. I soon got through the redpoint crux, which was partly my goal for that day - any further and it'd be a bonus. However I just continued to climb the route and soon found myself clipping the chains to my first proper project.

I've been told by a few people that I'm the joint youngest Brit to climb the route alongside Malcolm Smith. That's a cool title to hold but it won't be long before a strong youngster comes a long and climbs 8c+ at 17 or younger. A strong local, Peter Dawson is definitely capable of doing just that.

I think it's very exciting that climbing walls are getting more popular and more people are getting into climbing from a young age - the standards will continue to grow. I recently demonstrated at the South West regional rounds of the BMC Youth Climbing Series and the way some of the young climbers climb is amazing - they have perfect technique and if they have the motivation they will go a long way.

I've enjoyed getting into structured training recently. I aim to climb 5/6 days per week, with each session lasting around 3-5 hours. I'd say I get to Anstey's once every two weeks.

I know some people really struggle with this, but I find it pretty easy to fit education and socialising around climbing. I try to wake up pretty early which means I can get college work done in the mornings, go to college and then climb after that.

I'd love to get better at competitions and do more competing. I've also planned a return trip to Rodellar this year, where I have a few routes I'd like to get done.

In terms of a future job, I'd like to study architecture or structural engineering. I'm not sure why - it's just something I've wanted to do for a long time.

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