Your post is a bit confusing... are you talking about recovery of the first stage, the upper stage, or both??

First stages typically don't go VERY far from the pad... they follow a ballistic trajectory but the thrust of the upper stage igniting and separating the booster stage really slows the lower stage down-- so it usually continues on up about 10-20 feet behind the upper stage and then falls back, usually within about 30 feet of the pad or so (or closer if using smaller motors). The upper stage can get quite a bit of altitude since it's essentially "taking off" a "moving launch pad" which is itself ascending at a considerable clip. The best bet to get it back is to use a streamer-- chutes tend to drift a long way. You generally want a faster rate of descent than you would have with a parachute so it doesn't drift as far.

Staged rockets tend to be more susceptible to wind due to the added fin area on lower stages, and heavier liftoff weights which tend to make the rocket a bit slower when it leaves the rod. Also, the greater altitude means greater drift during the recovery phase. So while you can fly multistagers in wind, the less wind the better!

Good luck! OL JR

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