PEC

Thanks for all the comments! Very much appreciated.
Eric, I agree with the "too much shoulder strength" remark. I'll keep training with that in mind.
Niall, happy new year! Yes, you're right about catching the weapon too soon. I'll try to correct that.

Regarding etiquette, we follow Iwama style under Paolo Corallini Shihan, and throwing the weapon to the mat is the way we were taught to return it for another attack.