Most adolescent deaths are caused by injury sustained in traffic crashes, and driver education does not necessarily reduce the problem. This multi-method, ethnographic study describes the logic and regulation of youth driving culture in a northern Ontario community. This included 40 hours of participant observation and a survey of 88 novice drivers. The survey results suggest that youth are aware of the risk of driving, intend to practice safe driving and hold positive meanings of driving. Driver education and graduated licensing were seen as critical opportunities to support these goals. However, the mapping of youth driving culture revealed system flaws such as mixed messages, missed opportunity for integration, lack of clear regulation, and society's negative images of youth. Results also suggest that most prevention efforts are attempted from the point of view of assigning individual blame to youth as risk-takers. Theoretical and practical implications for road safety and injury prevention are discussed. (Contains 10 tables.)