I seem to recall seeing toe-clipped tandems with bungie cord between the front of the stoker's toe-clip and the back of the captain 's pedal. That always seemed to me pretty ingenious.
I/m not a tandem rider. Bought one before our marriage and it was a disaster. 20 miles, 2 crashes. (The marriage didn't survive either.) But I've now ridden the week long Cycle Oregon on my "half tandem", a fix gear. And when I encounter tandems, share that concept with stokers. They get it!. My rider plus rig is cockpit (front wheel, handlebars, controls steered by (waist up) the captain who picks the route, the gear (and refuses to either coast or change gears except when stopped!). The other half is the stoker (waist down), rear wheel and pedals driven by the timing chain (rear wheel, not captain but the effect is no different). So I am in the stoker's corner. No gear choice, not coast choice, (Uphill and downhill are rather different and there are only some tandems I can have the conversation with. The rest are just too fast.)
Pedal-wise, my issues are a little different. Downhill on the fix gear, I NEVER want to pull a foot off the pedal. EVER. Getting a Achilles slammed by a 200 RPM pedal would be life changing and not in a good way. (I would heal far faster from the ensuing 40 mph crash.) I ride toe-clips, quality leather straps pulled tight. Aluminum slotted cleats like we raced half a century ago.
I admire you all. I know I am too clumsy to be a good captain and have never looked for a ride as stoker. Good teams are a pleasure to watch (and every once in a while, I've been treated to some tows that were memorable).
Ben