I haven't been using disc brakes, but I've heard that they can get really hot, but tolerate heat much better than rim brakes (and tires).

Some older tandems also came with drum brakes, often used as "drag brakes".

If one could get it all adjusted right, then one might be able to tie pairs of brake levers together, and have both disc and rim brakes, perhaps using discs for primary stopping and dragging, and rim brakes as a backup.