Bull****! I have wheels that are 8 or 9 years old, 30,000+ miles (much of it
in the rain) and I have never broken a spoke. I ride only hand-built,
pre-stressed and re-tensioned wheels with DT, Sapim, or Wheelsmith spokes. I
am 170 lbs, ride on O.K. roads.

So, I am no expert in wheel-building (there are MANY discussions in this group
on that subject), but the shop girl is feeding you an uninformed line of BS.

Steve Scarich