Road Cycling - Wheel question

I'm currently building my first road bike, a Surly Cross Check. Actually, it will be used for: commuting, loaded touring, and single and multi-day road rides as well as some off road, XC type stuff. Basically a "do everything" ride. I'm 6' 2" and hover around 255 lbs so durability is my biggest concern. As I'm unfamiliar with road/touring components, I need help in choosing a good wheelset. I'm building my bike with Ultrega components so I'd like similar quality hubs (maybe even XT), I also understand that I'll need 34 hole rims to hold up to my weight. I'm also looking for 700 c wheels. Can anyone point me in the right direction with regard to brands and online stores, I haven't found much at Pricepoint, Nashbar, etc. Thanks in advance.

The guy I bought my Poprad from had Mavic Open Pros with 36 holes and 13 guage spokes. He was 6' and about 250 lbs. The wheels are indestructible.

55/Rad

check the width of the rear drops, if it's 130, you will need road hubs, if 135, then you will need mountain hubs. I have not heard of 34 hole wheels, even if they're out there, go with 36. Open pros are the gold standard for strength and lightweight.

It depends on what size tire you will be using. If you will be using only 700x23,25,28 tires then the open pro would be fine, but if you will be using 700x30,32,35 and up then maybe you would be better off with a wider rim than the open pro. Like the WTB Speedmaster rims found at www.bikeman.com get the 36 spokes. That's what I have and mine are laced to XT hubs. This is a stronger rim that can be used for trail riding and for a heavier person. A friend of mine has them, he is 225 lbs. and he has jumped off a high curve to see how they would perform. Didn't even affect the true.

The dropouts on the Crosscheck are 132.5mm, so that you can use both road and mountain wheelsets...