An update on my Subversion installation: I woke in the morning to find that most of the Subversion tests had failed during the "make check". I looked at the log file and it seems that all the tests that had anything to do with the repository failed (checkout, commit, etc).
First, a little history: Subversion 1.0 had a backend based on a Berkeley DB, while Subversion 1.1 introduced a backend based on the filesystem itself (not dependent upon the Berkeley DB). After weighing the repository pros and cons I decided on the new FSFS filesystem for my Subversion 1.1 installation.
Thus, I had a doubt: Could the make file only be supporting checks for the Berkeley DB filesystem? A google for it turned up this nugget which shows that a special argument is required during "make check" if you're using the new FSFS filesystem. Grrrreat....