"nolite te bastardes carborundorum"
That was about the only thing I remember from my one year of classes in what I believed, back then, was a total waste of time; the quest of Latin Enlightenment.
It says: "Don't Let The Bastards Grind You Down" and it applies to all those, thankfully infrequent, car show gnats who don't "get it". These cars (real and replica alike) were made for driving, not sitting at shows and THEY don't get that fact.
THEY don't get to touch my car - Only little kids of my choosing get to do that, along with photos of them in the seats, if their parents wish. THEY are quickly told, "hands off".
THEY can go back to their car and buddies and mind their own business - Most everybody is over near my car, anyway.
THEY get confronted with a terse answer to their "Kit Car?" question and a stare that bores right through their head until they return to their car's area - it never takes long.
THEY usually leave me alone - Besides, I'm usually busy answering questions of the small crowd around my car, that they never have to contend with over at THEIR car.
It is almost ALWAYS a 911 owner looking down their nose at a 356 owner because, as we all know, much of the early 356 cars were made with Volkswagen parts and Porsche only became "legitimate" when they "upgraded" to the 911 model. It's not just us replica folks and all this started back around 1967. That is the reason so many 356 clubs started around the USA. So just don't let it bother you and see the purists for the dick-heads that they show themselves to be. Many 911-ish owners are really cool and take a great interest in our cars. They are not the purist dick-heads.
Drive your car. THAT is the biggest thumbing-your-nose at the purists that can be.
Addendum: A few years back at the prestigious Lars Anderson Auto Museum "German Car Day" near Boston, Prarit Bhargava brought his beautiful Graphite Gray with Red interior Seduction 550 Spyder to the show. It was a spectator judged event and he won "Best in Show" but he had already left when the awards were handed out (me, too). The purists (some were in the TYP356ne club) went Bat$hit when they found out he had won and pointed out to the woman who oversaw the awards that it was a replica. "A replica of what?", she asked.
"It's a fake Porsche 550", they told her. "It's not a REAL Porsche!"
Her reply to them (and to Prarit on the phone when she told him about the award) was that, the Marshalls let him in as a German car AND gave him a prominent lawn position because his car was special. It was not a Porsche judging event, but a spectator-judged event and the spectators chose Prarit's car as Best in Show (by a wide margin, I might add.) She was very happy that he had won and when could he drop by to pick up his trophy?
If THEY wanted to win, perhaps they just needed a prettier car?