Peter Cole wrote:

Spokes never break in the center. 90% of the time they break at the elbow, the
rest at the threads, that's where the residual manufacturing/building stresses
are.

Never say never. I've seen a spoke break in the middle before, and
it makes a pretty spectacular noise. The culprit was corrosion,
probably started at a surface scratch.
--
terry morse Palo Alto, CA http://www.terrymorse.com/bike/