Thanks for the comments, and Cal, in response to your private message--no, I won't make you the beneficiary.
I was actually surprised to see the car weighed so much. If you read Beck's ads they advertise a weight of 1,800 pounds. Perhaps they have found ways to cut weight since mine--a very early production model--was made. Or maybe that's a "dry" weight.
I tried to be as careful as I could when building the car to keep the weight down. The engine block, heads, intake,
oil pan, water pump, and radiator are aluminum. The tranny has an aluminum case. The battery is a Dyna-batt that weighs 13 pounds, and is mounted such that neither cable is longer than about 24". The only concessions I made were in the safety department--in that I used a heavy scattershield when I could have gone with an aluminum bellhousing, but that probably added all of 30 pounds or so.
It has given me some appreciation for what race teams must go through in an effort to get their cars down to minimum weights.
The car is actually really nice to drive. The engine was built to provide power in the mid and upper ranges, rather than a ton of low-end torque, specifically because I knew I'd have traction issues. Yes, you can turn the tires to smoke with ease off the line, but by launching at 1500 rpm or so and rolling into the throttle you get just a hazing of the BFG's, and a whole lot of forward thrust. When it does break the tires loose it is extremely controllable, probably a combination of the rearward weight bias, a relatively long wheelbase, and the Corvette rear suspension. It's a fun car and I'm looking forward to getting a rollbar installed and getting it out to some open track events.