Last summer we went to Maine to attend L.L. Bean's one day course for beginners in clay pigeon shooting with shotguns. I bagged a few. Shot is much more forgiving than a bullet would be--you only need to get within a few feet. We were told and shown how to hold the rifle. You do not want the butt away from your body--you want to absorb all the kick safely. But in the excitement, I forgot. Greenhorn that I was, I held the gun away from myself , which meant that the rifle butt now became a battering ram aimed at my upper arm. See the result of NOT FOLLOWING DIRECTIONS. The photo shows the contusion after a day or two; it began as a small bruise the size of a quarter. Ah, the beauty of nature.