Originally Posted by
HillRider
Hmmm, your torture test must be pretty severe! I've used several Wippermann chains with the Connex links and even a Shimano chain with the Connex link for tens of thousands of miles and NEVER had one give the slightest problem. My only SRAMchain was an 8-speed used on my rain bike which wore out pretty fast due to abuse but the PowerLink never failed.
Former state road-racing champion, I have some wattage to throw around (as does the OP, being a tandem user), and tend to accelerate aggressively when coming off the line from a stoplight, too (hence the Cheetah avatar). However, some of the failures have been seemingly random, not just shifting under high power.