It would be unusual to find a bicycle shop in such small towns. There are a couple of local sporting goods stores, maybe one of them will be able to help you out?

She says the inner tube is slashed. This is her first serious bike and we foolishly sent her to school without a back up inner tube. We will be fixing that problem.

Luckily, we did send her with a tool kit and she taught herself how to get the front tire off, so that's good. Now we are looking for a replacement inner tube--but we just can't find a place that sells them. I tried several hardware stores, but no luck.

I think we are just going to have to send her a couple of tubes and she's going to have to figure out how to do it.

I feel bad for her as her bike is her transportation. She doesn't drive a car, so this is her way to get around. I found this board and hoped someone closer to NC could point to a contact person.

Like I said, it looks like I'll be sending her a couple of tubes this week and let her figure out the best way to fix the problem.

Thanks for your help and concern.

Obviously mail order can't help much with instalation but a direct order from her would certainly be easier than you buying and then mailing to her. Bike Nashbar is an excellent source for tires, tubes, or any other bike needs if you are going to fix it yourself. http://www.nashbar.com/index.cfm  The help of a good shop is best when you can get it but, in her situation, this would seem a good choice. (IF she doesn't have a credit card, you could probably still order on line but give her shipping address.) Of course, they also take phone orders.