Got a '70's-era bike you still ride w/quick-release wheels? My advice is to invest in new q/r skewers!

I have a fixie I built up and also built up a wheelset for it. For the front wheel I used an NOS '70's-era Shimano high-flange hub I got from a friend which apparently has never been laced to a wheel. One day I drove to a club ride meeting place and when I was putting the front wheel on after getting the bike out of the car the 35 year-old q/r skewer simply snapped (the part that goes through the axle), despite the fact that I only used it less than a couple of years and the bike has only been ridden in the rain once! How can this be? So I had to abandon the ride before it even started after driving twenty miles to get there.

Now that I bought a new q/r skewer for it I also got a spare for my supply bag when I transport my bike to club rides.