Green Route

Inspiration

Whenever I went out for a run, I always ran into the same annoying problem: finding a decent route. standard navigation apps like Google Maps are built for commuters, not runners. They only care about taking you from point A to point B as fast as humanly possible, usually putting you on busy roads or main streets. We wanted to build something with a clean, hassle-free interface that focuses on the quality of the run, not just the speed of the commute.

What it does

GreenRun takes the hassle out of route planning. You just tell the app how far you want to go and what kind of run you’re in the mood for, and it automatically builds a loop route that brings you right back to your starting point. You don't have to spend twenty minutes staring at a map trying to guess a loop that adds up to three miles.

How we built it

We kept our tech stack straightforward so we could build fast. We used simple HTML and JavaScript for the front end so the map interface stayed clean and responsive. On the backend, we used Python to handle the heavy lifting and map logic to calculate the route distances.

Challenges we ran into

Hackathons always come with unexpected bugs, and ours hit us right in the user interface. Our sliders—which let users set their running distance—completely broke and stopped updating. We spent hours staring at our code, digging through documentation, and testing different fixes before we finally tracked down the issue and got them working again.

Accomplishments that we're proud of

Since this was our very first hackathon, just getting a working project across the finish line feels like a huge win. Beyond the basic mapping feature, we were also able to build live rooms. This lets you share your custom running route directly with friends in real time so you can plan group workouts together.

What we learned

The biggest takeaway for our team was learning how to handle frustration. When code breaks and you have a ticking clock, it's easy to panic or want to give up. We learned that software development is mostly about sticking with it, staying patient, and troubleshooting one small piece at a time until things click.

What's next for GreenRun

• Adding richer map data: Right now, our routing relies on basic distance and roads. We want to bring in new datasets like park locations, elevation changes, street lighting, and air quality index. That way, GreenRun can actively steer you toward scenic, shaded, or paved trails and keep you away from heavy traffic or poorly lit streets at night.

• Building a native mobile app: Running with a laptop or pulling up a web page on a mobile browser isn't practical. Moving GreenRun to a full mobile app (for iOS and Android) will let us use your phone's built-in GPS for live turn-by-turn tracking, offline map saves, and quick route generation right from the trail.

Built With

• css
• fastapi
• featherless-ai
• geojson
• git
• html
• javascript
• leaflet.js
• open-meteo
• openrouteservice
• openstreetmap
• overpass-api
• python
• qwen
• render
• rest-api
• uvicorn