Freezing rain air at the surface within the region of high pressure. The warm air from the Gulf of Mexico is often the fuel for freezing precipitation. Freezing rain develops when falling snow encounters a layer of warm air aloft, typically around the 800 mbar (800 hPa) level, causing the snow to melt and become rain. As the rain continues to fall, it passes through a layer of subfreezing air just above the surface and cools to a temperature below freezing (). If this layer of subfreezing air is sufficiently deep, the raindrops may have time to freeze into ice pellets (sleet)
Centenary 1000 Mt St Bernard and Hotham Heights. The stage however was interrupted with a torrential downpours of rain hail and sleet and the race was suspended at Mt Buffalo, after covering around . The riders were accommodated at the Mt Buffalo Chalet as they were effectively marooned, with the road to Wangaratta under of water, the Alpine road over Mt St Bernard was impassable and of snow fell at Mt Hotham. Milliken suffered a puncture on Mt Buffalo and had to wait more than an hour for a spare wheel. It was reported that he was almost frozen and he abandoned