I'm far from an expert, but I've broken in two engines now, including one recently, so the info is fairly fresh in my mind, and my understanding is that the window of opportunity to set the rings is within maybe 50 to 100 miles. During the break in process you don't want to take it easy (except at first). Previously the thought was that you have to baby your engine for the first thousand miles, which from what I've read is the opposite of what you want to do. Cylinder pressure will force the rings out toward the cylinder walls, thus breaking them in and creating a good seal, so based on my research, what I ultimately ended up doing is starting off easy, going up to about 3000 rpm and about 1/2 throttle, and gradually working my way toward redline and full throttle, and engine braking/letting the car slow down on its own between acceleration runs. Then change oil. Lots of info out there supporting variations of this method.