Deep shock permeated the village of Montejaque, near Ronda (pop: 970), on Tuesday of last week when a young man from the village fell to his death on the winding road out of the village. Cayetano Postigo Hidalgo (30) was enjoying a bike ride with friends in the vicinity of La Presa de los Caballeros on the road to Sevilla.
Cayetano in Venice (Italy) [Photo: Facebook]
When the group, all experienced cyclists, realised one of their number was missing they retraced their steps but could find nothing.
It was only later that a walker on the other side of the ravine spotted the apparently lifeless body and alerted the authorities.
Cayetano had apparently fallen 50 metres with his bike and was in an inaccessible place. It took a team of mountain rescue experts from the guardia civil several hours to recover the body.
He was transported to Ronda where an autopsy was carried out before the body was prepared for burial. The funeral took place on Wednesday evening following a mass at the Church of Santiago La Mayor in the village.
A floral tribute to Cayetano at the spot where he fell [PW]
Cayetano
I counted Cayetano as one of my young "friends" from Montejaque. I got to know him when I was in the village every day working on the renovation of an old house. Around the same time he and two close friends, brothers Ruben and Borja, opened a chiringuito called "La Terraza" just outside the village.
"La Terraza" became an overnight sensation for all age groups. Ruben's cooking combined with the front of house acumen of both Cayetano and Borja was a winning formula.
When the open-air chiringuito had to close for the winter, the trio of young entrepreneurs took over the unoccupied "Bar Serrano" and turned it into "La Terraza" Mark II. This also became the go-to place in Montejaque village.
L to R: Cayetano, Ruben and Borja (Photo: Paul Whitelock)
After just a couple of years the trio took a commercial decision to "shut up both shops", and Cayetano resumed his university studies as a trainee notary, following in the footsteps of his father and older sister.
A promising life ahead snuffed out in an instant.
D.E.P. Cayetano.
Cayetano with girlfriend Laura in 2023 [Photo: POEM]
Press coverage
The incident has received wide coverage in both the Spanish and English Press. There was a piece in "Malaga Hoy", a short paragraph in "SUR in English" and an online article on "The Olive Press" website.
For some strange reason the OP article did not appear in the print edition.
Unfortunately the OP website article is hidden behind a paywall, so I haven't been able to access it.
The best of the reports I have come across so far was an obituary on Sunday in "Diario Sur", the regional Spanish paper.
Written by their editor-in-chief Jose Miguel Aguilar, himself a montejaqueño, it's a moving tribute to a popular and much-loved son of the village.
Jose Miguel Aguilar [Photo: Diario Sur]
Links:
José Miguel Aguilar: Simplemente Cayetano | Diario Sur
Tragedy in Ronda: Body of cyclist found in ravine is third death on Malaga's roads in a single day - Olive Press News Spain
La Terraza Mark II – Interview with Borja Tornay
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© Paul Whitelock (Pablo de Ronda)
Photos:
Facebook, Paul Whitelock, POEM
Tags:
autopsy, "Bar Serrano", Borja, Cayetano Postigo Hidalgo, chiringuito, Church of Santiago La Mayor, "Diario Sur", Facebook, guardia civil, Jose Miguel Aguilar, La Presa de los Caballeros, "La Terraza", "La Terraza" Mark II, Laura, "Malaga Hoy", Montejaque, montejaqueño, mountain rescue experts, obituary, Paul Whitelock, POEM, Ronda, Ruben, Spanish and English Press, "SUR in English", "The Olive Press" website, trainee notary, university studies