Mike Harper

Mike Harper is the owner and captain of the SS Clydesdale. He also served as the ship's navigator.

Mike was born and raised on Earth along with his younger sister, Ronnie Harper, where their parents owned a ranch in Kentucky.

He spent three years commanding the freighter SS Reliable for the Tellarite firm of Gravit & Yurtz. When his employers decided that it was time to decommission it and buy a newer ship. Mike saw his opportunity to strike out on his own, so he bought the Reliable with credits he’d saved up over the years. His first act as owner was to give the ship a new name, SS Clydesdale, which Mike felt embodied grace, power, and the ability to haul large loads. The second was to sign up with Gravit & Yurtz as an independent contractor.

In exchange for repairs to the Clydesdale, Mike was convinced by Commodore Scott Enwright to take on Dr. Janet Corbair, who had recently been release from a Federation rehabilitation colony. Soon after that, the Clydesdale was in need of more repairs, at which point Enwright offered them in exchange for checking up on Khan Noonian Singh on Ceti Alpha Five. Mike refused, but later made a different deal in which he got the repairs and in return the Clydesdale took Dr. John Smith to The Well. Smith was actually from a different universe and used The Well to get back, but not before making sure Mike and the Clydesdale were able to return to their home universe. ("Back to the Well" [TOS])

While docked at Tellar Prime, Mike made a deal with Captain Carter Davenport of the SS Ottoman to deliver a necklace to Antares. Needing a full cargo hold to make the trip worth it, Mike met with Gravit, owner of his former employer, Gravit & Yurtz, and, when she initially didn't have anything for him, he sent Bork to meet with Annar, owner of Annar's Exports. Mike ended up transporting cargo for both as well as Annar's nephew, Duv, to Antares. On the way, the Clydesdale was intercepted by the USS Ventus. ("Antares or Bust" [TOS])

After being imprisoned on the Ventus along with his crew, Mike engineered an escape from the ship's brig and was able to rescue Ronnie, who was possessed by the Light entity at the time. They fled on the Clydesdale, which freed the Ventus' crew from Light's control. Later on, the captain of the Ventus, Harry MacLaren tracked Mike down on Antares to thank him for saving the Ventus from Light. ("Busted" [TOS])

Mike saved the residents of the Lehrer Colony from an attack by a horde of small blue beings native to the planet that were upset that their home had been "invaded." Despite Mike's efforts, the colony administrator and Starfleet blamed him for the loss of the colony. ("Looking Out for the Little Guy" [TOS])