The last day of July, late in the afternoon, there arrived at the Pass a gentleman named Pedro de Torrecilla, a retainer or squire of Alfonso de Deza, but no one was willing to joust with him, on the ground that he was not an hidalgo.  The generous Lope de Estuniga, hearing this, offered to dub him a knight, but Torrecilla thanked him and said he could not afford to sustain in becoming manner the honor of chivalry, but he would make good the fact that he was an hidalgo.  Lope de Estuniga was so much pleased by this discreet answer that he believed him truly of gentle blood, and to do him honor entered the lists with him.  It was, however, so late that they had only time to run three courses, and then the judges pronounced their joust finished.  Torrecilla esteemed so highly the fact that so renowned a knight as Lope de Estuniga should have condescended to enter the lists with him that he swore it was the greatest honor he had ever received in his life, and he offered him his services.  Estuniga thanked him, and affirmed that he felt as much honored by having jousted with him as though he had been an emperor.[7]

A few days after the above events an incident occurred which shows how contagious the example of Quinones and his followers was, and to what amusing imitations it led.  A Lombard trumpeter made his appearance at the Pass, and said that he had been to Santiago on a pilgrimage, and while there had heard that there was at the Passo Honroso a trumpeter of the king of Castile named Dalmao, very celebrated in his line, and he had gone thirty leagues out of his way in order to have a trial of skill with him; and he offered to stake a good trumpet against one of Dalmao’s.  The latter took the Lombard’s trumpet and blew so loud and skilfully that the Italian, in spite of all his efforts, was obliged to confess himself conquered, and gave up his trumpet. |

So far, the encounters, if not entirely bloodless, had not been attended by any fatal accident.  The defenders had all been wounded, more or less severely:  once Quinones concealed the fact until the end of the joust in which his antagonist had been badly hurt, and it was only when the knights were disarmed that it was discovered that Quinones was bleeding profusely.  On another occasion his helmet was pierced by his adversary’s lance, the fragment of which he strove in vain to withdraw.  All believed him mortally wounded, but he cried, “It is nothing! it is nothing!  Quinones!  Quinones!” and continued as though nothing had occurred.  After three encounters the judges descended from their stands and made him remove his helmet to see whether he was wounded.  When it was found that he was not, “every one thought that God had miraculously delivered him.”  Quinones was also wounded in his encounter with Juan de Merlo, and again concealed the fact until the end of the combat, when he asked the judges to excuse him from jousting further that day, as his right hand, which he had previously sprained, was again dislocated, and caused him terrible suffering; and well it might, for the flesh was lacerated and the whole arm seemed paralyzed.