DENVER Denver smashed its previous daily heat record (70 degrees) on Monday, with the city's afternoon high temperature climbing all the way to 76 degrees.The warm, dry conditions combined with gusty winds prompted a Red Flag W arning along the Front Range through early Monday evening, but winds are expected to calm down through the evening and into Tuesday.The warm, dry pattern is expected to last through this week, with a mix of sun and clouds and daytime highs topping out in the upper-60s or low-70s through Christmas Day on Thursday.We are currently forecasting a high of 70 for Christmas Day, which would be Denver's warmest Christmas on record. The current record is 69 degrees, set in 2005.Christmas Day will also bring some gustier winds back to the Front Range foothills, along with a mix of mountain rain and snow. Better chances for mountain snow will arrive Friday and Saturday.The metro is looking at only slight chances for precipitation late this week, though this upcoming weekend will bring a big cooldown taking temperatures closer to normal for this time of year.DENVER WEATHER LINKS: Hourly forecast | Radars | Traffic | Weather Page | 24/7 Weather StreamClick here to watch the Denver7 live weather stream. ...read more read less