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Ducati has announced that the first 2010 Ducati Multistrada 1200 has rolled off the assembly line in Bologna, Italy. The white MTS 1200S with Öhlins suspension got the usual Ducati welcome, with champagne toasts and even a “baptizing” ceremony. The first Multistrada 1200S’s are set to be available by April of this year, while the MTS 1200 base model and ABS version should be out later in in May.

The Multistrada 1200 is an important motorcycle for Ducati as it shows the brand extending its mark beyond the performance bike realm, and into the sport-touring class, which is no easy feat considering the adventure bike/sport-touring king, the BMW GS, is the best selling motorcycle in the world. To help battle the GS, Ducati has made the Multistrada 1200 to have an engine with the longest service intervals in Ducati history: 15,000 miles. Photos of the first production Multistrada 1200 after the jump.

The Boston Globe is running a series of photos from the Dakar Rally, which we think are some of the best shots we’ve seen of the race to date. A mixture of octane and gorgeous landscape, we think you’ll enjoy these shots as much as we did. You can find the rest of them here at boston.com.

Rally racers are currently on their 12th stage of the race, heading from in San Juan, Argentina to San Rafael. After today, the riders will have to complete two more stages before the rally concludes where it began in Buenos Aires.

Photo: GABRIEL BOUYS/AFP/Getty Images

On January 13th, 2009, the Dakar Rally will for the first time, not involve trekking to Africa. Instead the venue will be held in Argentina and Chile. The change comes after the rally was cancelled last year for the first time since its inception in 1979 due to concerns over security. This coming rally will cover 5600 miles of varying terrain, just like the original rally. 530 teams will take off from Buenos Aires to start their six-day journey, of which there will be 230 motorcycless, 30 quads, 188 cars, and 82 trucks, from 49 nations.