Severe rust at bottom of upright posts

I have a 10 year old 24; above ground pool that was made by rec warehouse, so given that it has lasted this long is amazing in itself lol. The pool has developed some minor rust on the outside walls and I`m sure theres rust in the inside as well. My main concern is that on nearly all the upright posts at the very bottom where they fasten to the track, there is severe rust and in some spots it has rusted out. I priced replacement posts and they want $50 a post and there are 16 of them, I dont think the pool is worth sinking $800 plus into it, is there anything I can do to support the uprights? I saw on one site it said I could drive a stake into the ground against the upright to give support.

Yes, you can support the posts with stakes. The posts hold the top rails in place and the top rails keep the coping and metal rods from coming off. It's all important so the posts should be secured.

Start keeping a close eye on the rest of the pool. It's better to retire it when you feel it is no longer safe than to have it burst open when it is full of water.

later, Dennis