We rode an electric motorcycle that could change the way you think about sport bikes

David Choi/Business Insider

The 2017 SR from Zero Motorcycles.

There's a variety of reasons why someone would prefer to ride a motorcycle - even with its inherent risks and inconveniences - over a traditional car.

However, much like the transportation industry, the term "traditional" has been redefined to include modes of transportation that don't completely rely on an internal combustion engine - you don't need to look long to spot a hybrid or electric car on the road today.

Now Zero Motorcycles, an American manufacturer that produces electric motorcycles, is putting a new battery powered ride on the road with its 2017 Zero SR.

Nestled in the mountaintops of Scotts Valley, California, is a company that's trying to revolutionize the motorcycling industry by building sport bikes that run on lithium-ion batteries. The company says the Zero SR can deliver TK miles of range, while producing 70 horsepower and 116 foot-pounds of torque at the drop of a hat.

No, that's not an exaggeration or a ringing endorsement of the SR. It's a fact. Unlike traditional motorcycle engines that require time and a suitable transmission to ride the revs in order to achieve peak torque, there's no powerband on an electric motor, so you'll have access to 100% of its power with a simple twist of the throttle.

Now, I wouldn't blame purists who stopped reading after seeing "battery-powered" and "motorcycle" in the same sentence - I had my doubts, too. Taking the SR out for a spin myself helped answer some of my questions, while also raising some new ones.

Here's our impression of the 2017 Zero SR: