It is apparently a timing problem for whatever reason. I changed /etc/rcS.d/S05initrd-tools.sh to do a "lazy" umount and it seems OK. After bootup, there is no /initrd in /etc/mtab.
The line will read, for now: umount -l /initrd || exit -- To UNSUBSCRIBE, email to [EMAIL PROTECTED] with a subject of "unsubscribe". Trouble? Contact [EMAIL PROTECTED]