A NICE RIDE... SHAME ABOUT THE ANXIETY

Refined: The Zero DS

- By GEOFF HILL

FOR most bikers, the sound is a visceral part of the riding pleasure, whether it's the heartbeat of a single, the syncopated throb of a V-twin, the sweet whine of a triple, or the unmitigated howl of an inline four at full chat.

But here's the thing - after only 20 minutes of wafting along on an electric machine in serene and seamless bliss, you stop at traffic lights, a noisy petrol bike pulls up alongside, and you think how primitive and last century it is.

Which is one of the reasons why I made the Zero DSR/X machine my Bike of the Year in 2022.

The acceleration was stunning, the handling precise and riding it off road, including in some pretty "technical" sections, was a doddle - even for an off-road idiot like me - with a smooth and seamless delivery of power and no concerns about stalling it or deciding which gear to be in.

The DSR/X was Zero's adventure offering, although with the limited range of all electric bikes, that was a bit of an oxymoron.