First 1000km riding

So, I've had my motorcycle licence for three months and a half now. I've also covered 1000km and done the first service on the Ninja 250. I've ridden in various weather conditions, enjoyed some rides and hated others. Here are my impressions of the first 1000 kilometres riding.

The first thing I would like to recommend to future riders is not to buy a motorcycle before getting the licence if possible. The temptation to ride is too strong to resist, and it's really not worthy to get stopped by the police and delay further the moment of obtaining your licence. I was lucky not to get caught, but believe me, because of that temptation and some ignorance from my part, my Ninja wears some scars even today that remind me of the mistakes that I've made. 

The first, probably, 500km for me were the period of getting used to the bike: clutching, shifting, slow speed balancing, higher speed cornering, etc. I took it easy and progressed alone, without pushing myself too much. At some point, I just felt that I could move my body on the bike and feel more confident leaning in the corners. I'd watched many informative videos on cornering, so I knew the importance of looking where you want to go, which proved to be an essential skill in order not to get scared in the corners where you went in a little too fast. With time, my clutching/shifting smoothed out too. I was finally able to spend more time concentrating on the road, and not on my bike manipulation.

It might have taken me a long time to pass a thousand kilometres, but consider the fact that these are 1000km in the city. Since I tried to follow the break-in limitations on the maximum rpm as much as possible, I did not take the motorcycle on the highway until after the first service. I also used this motorcycle as an only mean of transport. During the summer, I used it to go to work every day as well as for amusement and general riding. And I think it makes sense to take your time at slower speeds before jumping on the highway. I certainly don't regret that I had to do that even though at the time I really really wanted to get on the highway.

As a conclusion, for the first thousand kilometres, I've progressed gradually and I think I've breached the point of being completely terrified and lame on the bike. I've done stupid things on the bike; I've also done quite surprising manoeuvres which left me feeling more confident. How you start in the world of motorcycling is completely up to you. But in my case, gradual progress without hurrying was the right choice.