Somewhere behind me is a Land Cruiser towing a horse float and somewhere in front of me is a non-descript white sedan. They were there before the thunderstorm unloaded on us, but the rain and spray make it impossible to see anything. I think of slowing down but the thought of being run over by the Land Cruiser keeps my throttle open. I consider pulling over but I can't see the side of the road and fear riding into a road sign or power pole. I try to open my visor a crack to stop the fogging, but it's the equivalent of having a hose squirted through the gap!
For five minutes I ride like this with the speedo sitting on 100 — not daring to slow down in case I become an ornament on the bullbar of the Land Cruiser, like those soft toys you see tied to the front of rubbish trucks, not daring to pull over in case a road sign indicating a corner poleaxes me. Then the rain eases and stops and I can open my visor to see the road ahead. No sign of the white car and behind me the road is empty. Clearly they have both given up driving in the conditions, making the decision it was unsafe or maybe they just turned off. I continue westwards towards Wangaratta, mentally kicking my rather damp self for not packing my rain suit but then telling myself, why would you, it's the middle of summer!
A small voice says, “You grew up near the mountains, you should know better.”
“Get stuffed,” I reply.
BEFORE THE RAIN, THE HEAT
I had left Adelaide five days earlier with a forecast I would expect at this time of year — 38 degrees with hot northerlies. I was heading east, so chose the coastal route along the Coorong to avoid the 41-degree heat inland. Those three degrees would make a huge difference. Not…
By 7am I'm nearing Meningie on Lake Albert at the same time as the floodwaters that had devastated so much of the country upstream are reaching the coast. There are warning signs as I approach the town and at one low point in the road, the water is beginning to creep across the tarmac. It will force the closure of the road later in the day… It's already getting hot and I'm getting a hint of the day ahead.
