Molly Thompson-Smith has flashed Verna (f8A), at Mardale Head Boulders, in Cumbria. 

Molly is one of just four British women to have bouldered 8B or harder, and has four 7C+ flashes to her name. At 8A, her flash of Verna is thought to be one of just two 8A flashes by British women, alongside Shauna Coxsey's flash of an 8A in Colorado back in 2013.

Verna was established in the Summer of 2021, and was initially graded 7C+. Since then, a hold on the original climb was badly broken, with a number of climbers suggesting that the break made the boulder slightly harder, pushing it up to 8A.

We got in touch with Molly earlier in the week, and she sent us over some thoughts about the ascent and the circumstances surrounding it:

'I've been having a hard time recently as my grandma who I was really close with passed away. My partner Sam thought spending some time outside would help, so he suggested we escape to the Lakes for the weekend in our new van'.

'I've never done 'van life' before so this was something to look forward to as well! But the main focus of the trip was to enjoy being outside and spend some quality time together'. 

'We ended up at Mardale Head on day one as some friends of ours wanted to try Eagle Huntress (f8B). The weather wasn't great, and every ten minutes a patch of rain would sweep in and we'd have to sit under a boulder eating Sour Patch Kids and drinking tea!'

'As soon as my fingers were warm and there was a small break in the rain, I decided to give Verna a go. I'd seen my friend Aidan Roberts flash Verna in a recent wedge video, and as the boulder is a straightforward line of small crimps, I thought why not also give it a flash go! I guess the boulder suited me really well, as I found myself stood on the top of it a minute or so later without too much difficulty!'

'It was a nice surprise as my fingers had been troubling me, especially towards the end of the competition season, and improving my flash PB on small holds was definitely a win for me. It's been so amazing to be climbing pretty much exclusively outside at the moment, and I've appreciated this even more so after missing out on last year's off/rock season when I broke my ankle!'

In addition to her flash of Verna, Molly also managed a further two 8A boulders during the trip, Downstairs Mixup (f8A) and Eagle Huntress (Stand) (f8A).

Watch Aidan's flash of the boulder below: