Spoke strength isn't an issue except at high numbers of fatigue cycles.
For an "event" wheelset, or even several events, the real issue in spoke selection is achieving the minimum sufficient spoke stiffness at the minimum weight, criteria that are met ideally with straight-gage spokes. Adding butting adds only weight and a miniscule bit of stiffness when such relatively limited mileage (like maybe one or ten thousand miles?) is involved, and the wheel isn't ridden by a giant or built with low spoke count. The wheel in question is not a low-spoke-count wheel and I know of no truly huge riders in the peloton. I often prefer to build with 15G spokes as I have yet to even approach 20k miles on any of my (many) normal-spoke-count wheels, 15G has the desired stiffness at the minimum cost and builds up with the greatest ease.
David Snyder
Auburn, CA usa
> http://www.cyclingnews.com/
>
> These look like straight gauge spokes to me. If butted spokes are
> stronger, as some have claimed, wouldn't these wheels have butted?
>
> Wes Oishi
> SoundCycles
> Classicrendezvous@bikelist.org
> http://www.bikelist.org/