Originally Posted by
volosong
(Myself? I "pulse", unless I can see a clear road at least a half-mile ahead, at which time I'll just let the bike have its head.)
The worst thing to do is ride the brakes at like half-force... the heat will just keep building up until you blow out. But the rims don't actually have much mass so they cool down pretty quickly when you let go of the brakes. So brake hard when you need to, but pulse on and off, front and back, and just be conscious of the heat factor and you'll probably be fine.
I've only done this once, rear tire blew off with a really loud explosion and left a welt in my leg which just happened to be next to the spot that blew off. As soon as it happened, I knew exactly why it happened and kicked myself, but then without thinking I grabbed the rear wheel to pull it out of the dropouts and burned my fingers on the rim it was that hot.