Rick Onanian wrote:

Why is the current QR system the _only_ one that could be easy?

On my mountain bike, I have to flip the QR lever and then
hand-unscrew the opposite side of the skewer partway. Why not
close the dropout slots into holes, and make a skewer that's
just a little quicker to unscrew all the way off and pull out
of the wheel?

Then, no tools required, and pretty much the same time to
remove and replace the wheel. The only situation where it
could be a problem is in a race.

I imagine the only thing to change from the current system is
the dropout, and minor change to skewers (which could still fit
in existing wheels and be used in existing slotted dropouts).

Disclaimer: I don't know what I'm talking about, and am a damn
fool. There, I said it for you. G

I'm not sure what you are envisioning.
You would then have to flex the fork legs outward to
fit the axle, and most forks are too stiff to
be flexed easily by that amount.

This doesn't solve the problem anyway. There
will be some play when the axle is fit into
its hole. It would still get pushed up and down
to the extent of that play by braking and bump
forces. The play wouldn't result in wheel ejection,
but it still isn't good design.

Stergios