>On a couple of occasions after working for several hours
>at the top of a tower, my fingers cramped uncontrollably,
>pushing all four fingers into the palm of my hand.
>
>In order to open my hand, I had to use my other hand to
>rotate my fingers to an open position, then stretch the
>muscles by pushing my fingers against the tower leg
>until the muscles relaxed.
________________________________________________________
Tom, something similar happened to me. I had been working,
to bring down a tribander and dismantle a 70 foot tower,
when I got a similar cramp in my right hand. Almost
simultaneously, my other hand cramped in the fully extended
position. There was nothing I could do but to use my forearms
hugging the tower and climb down. Before I got to the ground,
both calves and feet cramped. I was in one Hell of a shape
when I got to the ground.
I have found a solution to cramping like that (and cramping
of the instep of the foot or calf at 3:00 AM) and that is
Quinine. Your doctor can prescribe it for you and I feel
sure that he would if you explain that you need it to keep
from cramping. Believe me, it works!
To all of us TowerTalkians that are past 50 or are otherwise
prone to cramping, get your doctor to prescribe some quinine
pills and take one with lots of water several hours before
you do any climbing. I do, and it has (I'm sure) worked as
well on my tower-climbing cramps as it has on my calf and
instep cramps at 3:00 AM. One pill keeps the night cramps
away for as long as 2 weeks.... although that may vary
considerably from person to person.
All this reminds me, I'm down to one pill left.... gotta get
that prescription renewed before I put up that KT34A!!!!
73, Rod W5HVV
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