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So maintenance crew at school I coach at got my pit out for the upcoming spring season. I went to extend the standards and one them will not move. Totally stuck. I took it out of the base and laid it on the ground and noticed all the paint for the heights are starting to peel off and the standard looks to be expanding from the middle. That is when I noticed that the cap for my standard was missing, I have the AAE standards, and I have a feeling that water got stuck inside one them over the winter and rusted. I found out that they kept them under our bleachers standing up all winter.

My question is, does anyone know if I can take a standard apart and clean it.

you can usually take them apart, but I think your issue is if you live in a winter climate , then ice may have frozen and expanded inside the uprights.
If so, they'll never work right again. You might try some heat to warm them up and then try to pull them apart. Or try liquid wrench and hose the area between the two pieces and let the sun and solvent work on them for a bit.

Are you inferring these are steel uprights? Aluminum oxidizes, but it won't rust.