Zero launches special-edition DSR electric motorcycle in celebration of 15-year...

Zero launches special-edition DSR electric motorcycle in celebration of 15-year anniversary

California-based Zero Motorcycles is celebrating 15 years of building electric motorcycles – an industry that many don’t even realize has been around for over a decade and a half. And to mark the occasion, the company has teamed up with the National Forest Foundation to release a special-edition DSR dual sport electric motorcycle.

The Zero DSR is the company’s top dual sport model, designed to operate both on the streets and on the trails.

The DSR is powered by the 52 kW (70 hp) Z-Force 75-7 motor capable of 157 Nm (116 ft-lb) of torque. The $15,495 bike can reach a top speed of 164 km/h (102 mph) and features a range of up to 262 km (163 miles) per charge.

Zero pitches the DSR as the perfect way to get out in nature and explore your surroundings without the typical noise and exhaust pollution of gas-powered off-road motorcycles.

The popular DSR was used as the base for the Zero DSR Black Forest, an adventure bike version of the DSR.

Now the DSR is receiving another new get-up, though this time as part of a limited edition.

For each sale of the limited-edition run DSRs, $500 will go directly to the National Forest Foundation. To commemorate the occasion, the limited-edition bikes are available in five new nature-inspired colors.

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As Zero Motorcycles CEO Sam Paschel explained:

“Zero was founded with a passion for off-road motorcycles that could be ridden in the Santa Cruz Mountains. It has been our mission to transform the riding experience with pure electric vehicles, and a passion for conservation is deeply rooted in our DNA. Our bikes are an incredible way to experience off-road riding, including in America’s National Forests, and we stand with the National Forest Foundation in their mission to guarantee access to those lands for future generations.”

According to the company, the $500 from each sale earmarked for the National Forest Foundation will be used to help improve, restore, and make ecologically sustainable trail systems for Powersports enthusiasts across the country.

As conservation partnerships director for the National Forest Foundation Dayle Wallien explained, the foundation is excited to receive the support:

“We are excited and grateful to partner with Zero Motorcycles on projects to improve outdoor experiences and restore our National Forests. Our public lands are amazing places to explore and recreate and we appreciate a commitment to help us steward them from an innovative company like Zero.”

Zero DSR Black Forest adventure bike

The DSR has seen a huge surge in demand lately. Just like the skyrocketing electric bicycle sales that occurred early in the COVID-19 pandemic, off-road electric motorcycles have seen their own sales numbers jump.

As Zero’s director of communications Dan Quick expanded:

“The spike in ADV/Dual Sport models that we’re currently still chasing demand on began during the first few months of the pandemic. We’ve never followed the lackluster trend of sales growth that the traditional Powersports have seen over our past 15 years, but rather the far more spirited trendline of general EV sales over that same period. That has generally been a fairly consistent mix of street versus dual sport models over that period, but the weighting of demand has definitely increased considerably to favor dual sport over the past 12 months.”

With many people working from home and generally finding themselves with more time on their hands for leisure (and in search of socially distant leisure activities), outdoor powersports has seen record growth.

That increased demand for Zero’s dual-sport electric motorcycles provided the perfect opportunity to partner with the National Forest Foundation, a cause that Dan explained is particularly meaningful to him:

“And to be perfectly honest, that’s the part of the story I enjoy the most. I’ve grown up in national parks and forest and bureau of land management spaces my whole life and have always been a sucker for our public lands. We do have an authentic and legitimate track record here locally in stewarding trail access and this was our opportunity to amplify that to a national level.”

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