BurbleChaz

The northeast of the state is still burning. The winds have veered from the north to the southwest, and we've had a cool change in Melbourne. The temperature has dropped below 25C. As the front moves east, there's a chance it may help the firefighting. There's also a chance that the gusty winds it brings will make the fires less predictable and more dangerous. Thunderstorms under the front could spark off more fires.

While dramatic events raged across the state, we got up early, had a bite to eat and went for a bike ride. It rapidly became a Valuable Learning Experience. Frankly, we were one failure from disaster.

We prepared well - full sunblock, four litres of iced water between us and a moderate goal. We pottered down the road towards Westgate Park. The temperature was rising, but the brisk breeze kept the apparent temperature within reasonable limits. We stopped occasionally to top up the fluids, and it was all going well. Then, we turned away from the river and went into the park. The trees and shrubs reduced the wind, and the temperature rocketed. After a kilometer, we stopped for a drink. The Sensible Cyclist (who had questioned the wisdom of this whole exercise from the start) needed to cool down. Four litres seems like a lot, until you've used two of them to get to the halfway point. We hadn't actually reached the halfway point, in either distance or water, so we turned round, dropped the pace, and focussed on getting home safely.

The temperature was over 40C when we got home. We had less than half a litre left. We'd been out for less than an hour. A single puncture could have turned this from a Learning Moment into a catastrophe. We'd been gubbling water faster than the Toorak Tractor gets through fuel, and we nearly ran out.

Turns out that this was the hottest December day in Melbourne for over 50 years - 42C.

We went for a swim before taking proper remedial measures - never has a beer been so welcome.