Sign Figures Part Two: Trips

Let’s start with one of the most common figures. Even though this one repeats often, there’s a surprising amount of variation. Even in these four examples (and granted, one was printed on paper and stretched oddly), look at the shape of the feet!

I also like that the above figure has managed to trip before reaching the step. That front foot is firmly planted on the flat surface, so what’s happening here? The only possible explanation is that the figure has been pushed from behind by an invisible figure: clear signs of foul play.

Here’s another common variant. This one at least appears to have tripped by itself, no suspicious circumstances. Or are there? Who put this perfectly rectangular obstacle in their way?

This one is my favorite, probably because it’s most similar to how I look when I trip on something. I call it “falling and flailing.”

This one is definitely a Trip based on the sign context (removed here), but if I didn’t know better I’d say it was an ad for trail running, since this figure looks perfectly in control:

And if you’re thinking some of these figures look awfully familiar, you’re not wrong. Like I said, the main difference between a Slip and a Trip is the orientation:

Most Trips involve very simple icons, but you do occasionally get higher detail, and sometimes very different versions of the same figure. This one comes in a basic version with hints of hands and clothing, and a much more detailed version with clothing, boots, hands, and a face.

Another interesting difference between Slips and Trips: all the Slips I’ve seen indicate a figure to which the bad thing has already happened, but with Trips you sometimes find figures who are showing the best case scenario, where the figure has proudly avoided a hazard. We’ll see this a lot with Falls and Drownings later on, but otherwise it seems rare. I call this one the Anti-Trip:

As we saw earlier, most Slips happen to figures who are traveling toward the right. Trips are also more common toward the right, but they’re a bit more evenly distributed. The widest variation is in the cause of the trip, which, like Slips, is sometimes a basic symbol but often correlates with the actual surface the sign is warning about.

That’s all for Trips: stay tuned for our next major category, Falls, in a future post!

For now, I’ll leave you to ponder this text-based trip hazard sign, which looks unsettlingly like a ransom note: