I Built My First App at a Hackathon Without Ever Writing a Single Line of Code

How I Built My First App at a Hackathon Without Ever Writing a Single Line of Code

I’m a designer. I use programs like Framer and Figma. I think in grids, colours, and typography. But up until a few weeks ago, I’d never built a working app in my life. Not even close.

So… how did I end up launching CoachKit, my first-ever actual web app, during a hackathon?

And how did I do it without knowing how to code?

This is the story of how I went from “just a designer” to solo-building a real app over one wild month using Bolt.new. Spoiler: If you’re sitting on an idea and think you need to know how to code to build it, you absolutely don’t.

The Idea: A Simple Tool for an Overlooked Role

CoachKit was born from a simple but persistent observation: grassroots sports coaching is chaotic.

Local coaches, whether for school teams, weekend clubs, or community leagues are often volunteers or part-timers juggling practices, matches, communication, and admin with little to no support. Most rely on a mashup of WhatsApp groups, Google Sheets, paper drills, and memory to keep things running. It’s messy, time-consuming, and easy to drop the ball, literally and figuratively.

The spark came watching how all over the place community coaches were when trying to juggle multiple balls with little to no help. They needed a better way to plan sessions, track players, share lineups, and communicate quickly. Something simple. Something that just worked.

So I thought: what if there was a lightweight, mobile-first tool that acted like a digital hub, a place where coaches could run their teams with the same ease they’d check their messages?

That idea became CoachKit - a smart, clean, coach-first platform designed to replace the chaos with clarity.

Building the UI would be simple. But how do I make it into an actually working, functional app?

Enter Bolt.new: My Secret Weapon

I had used Bolt before a couple of times, mainly just for mocking up quick website wireframes and designs. But never to actually code something.

Then I saw a post on X about Bolt’s World’s Largest Hackathon. I immediately thought why not enter the hackathon, finally build CoachKit and see where the journey takes me?

After all, Bolt is the perfect tool for beginner no-coders like myself. It lets you build full-stack web apps using natural language and visual logic - think of it like a cross between Figma, Airtable, and JavaScript… except you don’t need to know any of them.

You can literally say things like:

“Make a section where coaches can create custom training plans with AI integration”

And it just… does it.

Within hours, I had a visual mockup and was wiring up real features. Not just fake UI, real functionality: AI training plan creator, performance analytics, team rosters, dashboards. I couldn’t believe how quickly it started coming together.

Building CoachKit (While Figuring It Out As I Go)

Let me be real: I had no idea what I was doing half the time.

There were moments where I broke things and had no clue why. I tried way too many programming languages. I drank too much coffee. I changed the layout multiple times. I got error after error after error.

But I kept going. And piece by piece, CoachKit started to feel real. Every new feature was being built in front of my eyes from a simple prompt.

After hours of tweaking and editing, I finished building CoachKit and submitted it to the hackathon with 27 minutes to spare before entries closed.

It was an awesome journey, one that I’m glad I took the plunge into, and it has inspired me to join more hackathons in the future!

What I Learned During My First Hackathon

*You don’t need to code to build things. Tools like Bolt are changing the game for anyone to make their coding dreams a reality.

*Building something real is way more satisfying than just shipping mockups.

*Hackathons are intimidating, but worth it. You learn more in one weekend than in weeks of tutorials.

*You get to be part of an awesome community and make supportive friends.

Want to See CoachKit?

If you’re curious, you can check it out here: https://coachkit.netlify.app/

Here’s a quick peek at what it does:

*Coaches can plan and log training sessions in seconds

*Track player attendance, positions, and performance with ease

*Share quick updates with your team or parents

*View session history and team progress at a glance

It’s still a work in progress, but it’s real. And I made it. That still blows my mind a little.

Final Thoughts

If you’re a designer or non-coder who’s ever said, “I have this idea, but I don’t know how to build it,” let me just say this:

You’re closer than you think.

That idea you keep thinking about? It’s possible. The tools exist. The support is there. You just have to start.

I started with zero coding knowledge, a handful of rough UI sketches, and a simple idea. A month later, I had CoachKit. And now, I can’t stop thinking about what to build next.

So go ahead. Say yes to the hackathon. Build that thing. Surprise yourself.

You’ve got this.