The Farmer Who Skis
Longtime friends Hamish Acland and Angus Rowley can’t remember how they first met. Maybe it was sometime twenty-plus years ago on a chairlift at Treble Cone in New Zealand, one of them recalls. It’s one of those situations where no one is really sure how or when it happened, but everyone’s better for it. Over the years, the two have formed an inseparable bond over skiing, but there’s something that brings them even closer—sheep, thousands and thousands of sheep.
Acland, a former competitive skier and founder of New Zealand-based apparel company Mons Royale, and “Gus” Rowley, a merino sheep farmer and lifelong skier based just outside of Wanaka, are leaning on each other to create stylish, functional wool products that are certified-sustainable to the highest degree. Operating under strict supervision from ZQ Merino, Gus’ ranch ensures the best possible standards of animal welfare and environmental responsibility, translating to only the best materials being sourced for Mons Royale. But Gus’ story doesn’t stop with his top-notch farm and countless happy sheep; he represents a new age of farmers. With tattooed arms, a love of punk-rock and a full quiver of Armada skis, Gus is a catalyst in the movement toward connecting product to place…
