I was a very lousy college xc runner who struggled to break 26 for an 8k but ran 14:40 and 30:40 for 5k and 10k on the track, respectively. Since graduating, I’ve gone on an run 24:40 for 8k multiple times on the roads. Even going back to HS, my best was 16:20 on a 3 mile course and barely qualified for states my senior year but then came back and got 3rd place in the 3200 at states.
XC was always harder for me…maybe it was the massive fields and struggling to stay engaged with so many bodies flying around you. Found it much easier to latch onto a train of runners going in single file around a track where you only have to make two or three moves in a race as opposed to constantly having to surge or battle for position in a race with hundreds of runners.