A couple things... I think there is a place that ships rock in water, but I can't think of it right now.
When I bought the rock for my tank, I bought cured and had it shipped airport-to-airport and picked it up a couple of hours after it landed at my local airport. It was out of water for approximately 24 hours. It was shipped wet, wrapped in newpaper and plastic and was pretty drippy when I received it. It didn't smell bad at all. When I tossed in a shrimp to kick start my cycle, I saw ammonia for just a day or two, and then just started seeing nitrates show up. So as far as cycling, I really didn't have to do much. I'm sure it all depends on how "cured" the cured rock is, but just thought I'd share my experience.